The Wish I'll Regret
by Neon Clouds
Summary: On a night of distress, Finn makes a wish that he never became a Keeper. But what at first feels like a blissful break from fighting O.T.'s turns into a nightmare when he sees how it has affected his life and that of the other keepers.
1. It's this DHI thing!

**Hey, guys! Haha, I got a special little surprise for you people! Sorry but I couldn't keep my promise about publishing a new multichap sooner. However, I have a compromise. But we'll talk about that later.**

**Now, what better way to kick off the New Year than with a new multichip! Enjoy and please, it's a little long so bear with me. I started off today with 268 and ended up with 5,443 words. So please cut me some slack if it's bad.**

Finn's P.O.V

"Lawrence Finnegan Whitman! Get in here, right now!" My mom shouted from the kitchen, and I immediately knew I wasn't going to get any peace and quiet anytime soon even though the entire walk how I'd been anticipating a little relaxation.

"Yeah, mom?"

"A C?! How can you be getting a C in Language Arts? I don't expect you to be getting the best grades in the school, Finn, but this is unacceptable."

"That's just the progress report. I still have half the nine-weeks left to get it up."

"You'd better." She slammed the laptop closed. "Because until you get it back to at least a B, your phone privileges are being revoked." She extended her hand in wait. "Hand it over."

I couldn't even explain the amount of frustration and confusion I had at that moment. "What? You can't be serious."

"Oh, I'm beyond serious."

"But, mom, I need to stay updated on everything. The other DHI's are depending on me to always be available. The only reason my grades are so low right now are because of how hectic everything is!"

"Which is exactly why you can't text them anymore. The less time you spend on all this nonsense, the more time you can spend studying. Now give it up." I reluctantly handed her the phone.

"You're being completely unfair, you know that?"

"You think this is unfair? Fine, how about your TV privileges? And you're grounded for a week."

"But-"

"No buts. Now get up to your room and start your homework. And I want to be able to actually see the floor by the time dinner's ready."

"Ugh! This is a bunch of crap!" I yelled, bounding up the stairs

"Finn, I will not tolerate cursing in this house!" But before she could even continue talking, I slammed my bedroom door closed.

I knew, with the temper she was in right now, my mom would ground me for the next year if I didn't do exactly what she told me to. So, I started my homework like she said and began to clean my room.

By the time I had gone down stairs for dinner, I had finished all my homework but math and was half through organizing my room. We were silent while we ate. It was the first time in a long time I had seen my mom so mad and I guess the whole family decided against getting on her bad side for the night.

My pest of a little sister kept sending me these glares, as if to say _Thanks for putting her in a bad mood._ She was just pissed off that when she came home she wasn't immediately showering with hugs and kisses and confetti. My parents treat her like she's an angel and they never even notice what a nuisance she is to me. In their eyes, she's not only a model daughter. She's a model student, a model citizen, and a model _child._

Of course, my dad wasn't happy either with my grades or with the fact that I put my mom in such a mood. I think he hated me as a son and right now he was really expressing it. I swear, by the way he was looking at me, the only thing between him and beating the hell out of me was the table and a possible child abuse accusation.

I really screwed up since my mom was the only person in my family I could actually talk to. But I wasn't about to regret it. It wasn't my fault. She knows about the keepers and crossing over and the overtakers and she should understand how important it is.

After that half an hour of torture was over, I locked myself in my room, finishing up my earlier tasks. When I was done, I threw myself onto my bed, exhausted. The only thing that kept replaying in my head was the thoughts of tonight, wondering what would happen and if we were going to be attacked.

I don't know how I did it, but I must have fallen asleep in the middle of my worrying. All of a sudden, I found myself laying on a soft sheet of grass and woke up in Disney. _Great, _I thought to myself. I had forgotten to change into black. My jeans were fine, but my red shirt was sure to be spotted easily from far away.

"Hey!" I heard someone hiss from behind me.

Most people would have jumped out of their skin at the noise, but, being a Keeper, I always had to be alert for sounds and had been somewhat expecting it. I turned around. "Hey." I calmly, said back to Amanda, with a smirk.

"You're here early."

"You too."

"Ms. Nash sent me and Jess to bed without dinner. Apparently, Jeannie told her another lie about something or another and she was real pissed off at us."

"So, why isn't Jess here yet?"

"Last I remember, she was up drawing. Not a dream, just like a few sketches for her art class. Oh and next time remember to wear black." She took off her hoodie and handed it to me. All she was wearing underneath was a black tank top, which I really didn't mind. At all. "So, what's your excuse?"

"Mom was mad at me about my grades and I had to spend the entire night cleaning my room and doing homework. I was exhausted."

"Oh, you poor baby." She mock-pouted, stepping a little closer.

"Hey, you have no idea what I've had to do lately." I looped an arm around her waist and pulled her even closer to me. She was basically pressing me against the wall when she spoke again.

"Why don't I wake you up a little, then?" She whispered bewitchingly, leaning up.

"Okay, lips, tongues, and all other parts of the human body to yourselves, people."

Amanda straightaway jumped away from me. "Jess!"

"What? As far as we're concerned, what's in order at this moment is for us to organize ourselves and understand what's coming tonight, not a love fest generously provided by you and Finn." Willa smirked.

"Whatever." I couldn't help but grin as Amanda tried to glare straight through the two. "It might be a while before the others get here. So get comfortable."

This was somewhat true. It was a rather long fifteen minutes in the eyes of four impatient teenagers. But when we had all managed to get there, we went straight to business.

"So we know the overtakers are planning something. They've been a bit more active, sneaking into stores and stealing certain merchandise." I said.

"Maybe hats and disguises so they can go out even when the cast member that plays them is walking around." Charlene suggested.

"No, that can't be it. Most of the villains don't have walk-arounds, and they won't really care if they're seen. But they might be planning on going beyond the gates of the park. There they won't have their Disney character appearances to hide behind." Philby stated.

"We're all aware of the division in the ranks of the villains. Some are considered higher in power than others. Most of the time this has some kind of correlation with popularity." I said.

"Their jobs and tasks probably depend on their status in the hierarchy." Amanda added, catching on.

"Exactly. What we need to do tonight is find out what every different rank's tasks are. We'll be able to group it all together and figure out what they're planning."

"Yeah, that's a good idea." Willa agreed. "The guards are normally the less important ones or the ones with lower rank and power. But, they have to report to the others at one point or another. When they go to base, we'll know where the most important stay."

"Okay, then. Two groups. Group one: Willa, Jess, and Philby. You guys will keep watch on the guards. You know who they are. The CTD's, the pirates. If you see them go into what looks like a good O.T. headquarters, tell us so we can investigate. When we go in, continue to watch the guards. Maybe they'll help us figure out their tasks and plans."

They nodded and ran off.

"Now, what do we do while they look for guards?" Maybeck asked, almost complaining he was bored.

"We keep our eyes out, too." I told him. "Just keep quiet. The last thing we want to do is give away the fact that we're here. We're usually in groups or pairs, so we're not so much of a threat. But if they find out we're all here, they'll attack for sure."

We weren't on lookout long before Charlene, crouched in the bushes, waved us over.

"What's she doing here? Maleficent normally isn't out!" Amanda whispered.

"I don't know. Sh…be quiet so I can listen."

We were all dead silent, basically lying on our stomachs in the dirt trying to keep out of sight. "The Keepers are here, master. I've just been informed by the guards in sector 12." A pirate told her.

A wicked smile spread across her green face and my blood turned to ice. "All of them?"

The pirate nodded. "Yes, master."

"This is going to be enjoyable." She cackled. "Search for them. Tell all the guard to stop and find them. Once all seven are found, bring them back to me. Alive." She turned, her black cape flapping and called her crow over. After whispered something in its ear, it flew off. Her grin would make babies cry. Then she disappeared into the building behind her.

"Well, at least now we know where the headquarters are." I muttered, begrudgingly.

"Yeah, and we know that we're all dead in ten minutes if we don't get out of here. How'd they find out?" Charlene whispered frantically.

I tried to think. Sector 12? I hadn't even known they separated the park into sections. "The guards must have spotted the others."

"We have to find the fob and get out of here. Now." Amanda said.

"We have to warn the others first." I pulled out my walkie-talkie. I pressed the button and spoke into it. "Guys, they know we're here. Get out now."

At the first, there was no response, just static. Then a rushed Jess responded. "Yeah, we just saw a mob of pirates heading our way and now we're in a mad dash for Escher's Keep!"

"Come on, we have to meet them at Escher's Keep." I told my group. There was the sound of guns sounding in the distance. "Get up!"

I saw toy soldiers way off and waved the others to hurry up. We scurried, hopefully unseen, towards Cinderella's castle. I heard yelling from pirates and, by what they were saying, understood that the others had lost them. When we reached the castle, we pushed open the door of bricks and stepped inside.

"Oh, thank goodness you guys are alright!" Willa said quietly, with a sigh of relief.

"Yeah," I huffed, helping Maybeck push the door closed. "For now at least."

"Man," Charlene muttered, peeking through a tiny window in the wall. "There's a lot of them. I don't think they know we're in here but if we leave to look for the fob and they spot us, we'll be surrounded in two seconds."

"Great, so basically we're dead meat." Jess mumbled from the steps.

"What do we do?" Amanda asked. Everyone turned to look directly at me.

"What?" I asked, somewhat irritated. "You seriously want _me _to think of a plan?"

"Um, yeah." Charlene said.

"Are you kidding me? I'm so sick of this! I always have to think of a plan. Do you know how much pressure that is?"

"But you're our leader, Finn." Amanda argued. "You always know what to do."

"No! I don't. Every day, every night! It's always nagging at me in the back of my head. At school, at home, on the bus, everywhere! What's going to happen tonight? Are the OTK's going to attack? Is someone going to turn into a green-eyes again? Are things going to fall apart and all the weight put onto my shoulders to fix it?"

"We don't-"

"You don't what? You don't realize how much this worries me! I'm 24/7 thinking about what's going to happen to you guys! All this guilt when one of you gets hurt! All this stress when I don't know what to do! It's eating me alive!"

"It's because you care."

"No, you know what it is? It's this stupid DHI thing! And you know what else? I WISH I NEVER BECAME A KEEPER!"

There was so much hurt in their eyes, all six pairs staring back at me. A mix of browns, grey, and blues, some blurred by their tears.

"You don't mean that." Amanda said, tears threatening to fall over the rims of her eyes.

"And who's to say I don't?"

"But you…if you never became a Keeper, we never would have…met." Amanda was shaking. Tears streaked her face and her eyes blurred. I didn't respond. "You wish we never met?"

"Well…ugh." I felt like screaming but I know that'd just get the attention of the guards. But I didn't know what to say. Sometimes I really just flat-out _hated_ being a DHI! She stared at me intently for an answer, her lower lip quivering.

But I didn't have time to give it a second thought.

I just turned on my heels and fled from the small room, leaving them to deal with their damn problems themselves for once. Think of their own fricking plan for once!

After a while, I was hurdling up the stairs of Escher's Keep, thankfully remembering all the right and wrong steps. The elevator up seemed lonely. The memory of the first time I had ridden it popped into mind, but I drove it away, too angry to think about it.

When I made it to the dark top room, I peeked out the window that overlooked the entire kingdom. I could see guards swerving left and right. They hadn't even come close to the castle, thank god.

I stepped away from the window and tried to catch my breath. It felt like I had been running for hours. My head was spinning.

Maybe Amanda was right. I didn't mean it. No! She was wrong. This job, this responsibility, this life was ripping me apart. I couldn't sleep at night, even on the days I didn't crossover.

My mom was being dragged into it too! She was sleeping less, I could tell from the bags under her eyes. She wasn't eating a lot, I could tell from the way her clothes were extremely baggy on her.

How could I continue with something that was hurting so many people? But, I couldn't help but think that the worst time I had ever hurt them was today, right now.

"What does that matter?" I mumbled to myself. "So what if for once they understand that I can't solve all their problems?"

"Oh, honey, you seem to have forgotten what friendship is really about." A voice came from the shadows.

"Who said that?" I called out into the darkness.

A chubby lady came out in a long blue robe with a pink bow. She had white hair and a friendly smile. I recognized her instantly. "Sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you." She laughed.

"You didn't frighten me. But, as a fairy god mother, you might want to consider a less ominous entrance"

"Well, someone's not in as good a mood as he normally is. You're usually happy to meet the good characters."

"Yeah, well, right now I ain't so thrilled."

"I can see that. I also saw how you treated your friends down there. Now that was a bit rude, wouldn't you say?"

"Are you kidding me? They're always taking advantage of me. They don't know how annoying it is that they always want a plan from me."

"You're their leader, Finn." She smiled, gesturing for me to sit down next to her. I obeyed. "And their friend. They expect you to always be there for them as they are for you. True they can be a little quick at asking you what to do, but that's because they trust you."

"I think it's just a hassle! Ever since I started crossing over, things have been out of control."

"Life's not about control. It's about making the best of what's given to you. Some things you just can't keep from happening. Other can be turned around with one small action."

"That's exactly what happened. Now my life is a mess!"

"You're so naïve, Finn. You have no idea how blessed you are. Things could be so much worse."

"Yeah, how?"

"Well, you tell me. What makes your life so horrid?"

I groaned. "For one thing, I don't get sleep or at least not enough. And ever since I got the job, my dad and I have grown apart. And my sister and I aren't as close. And now that everyone's life is in my hands, whenever something bad happens, I always feel awful."

"You know, Finn, that's not such a bad thing." She patted my knee. "Love towards others isn't something you should consider punishment."

"But it gets out of hand." I protested.

She frowned and rolled her eyes "Fine, if you're going to be so difficult, I'm going to show you. I will grant you one wish and we'll see just how you like it."

"I wish the overtakers didn't exist."

"Too late. You've already made your wish."

"What?" Without answering my question, she flicked her wand and disappeared. "What wish?"

For a moment, nothing happened. Then I felt like the world was growing foggy. I started couching, choking on the thick air. All of a sudden, a dizzying feeling washed over me. It was a feeling I remembered from when I first came to Disney world. It felt like…magic.

There was a flash. I was suddenly standing in room with a woman in a chair, bouncing a little baby and a man pacing the room. "What…what happened?" he asked.

"Her parents died last week. I knew her mother, she was a friend of mine. Please, can we take care of her?"

"Have you gone mad? Don't you understand that we have no saving, no money? I still can't find a job and you want to adopt a child?"

"I just-"

"I'm sorry. We just can't raise a child. Not now. We'll have to hand her over to an orphanage."

They continued to talk for a moment but I couldn't hear what they were staying. It was like a TV on mute. There was another flash and now I stood in a small bedroom. A little girl with brown hair was packing a bag with clothes and other essentials.

"I'm leaving this place." She mumbled to herself. "I need to find my parents. I know they're alive, I just know it."

It was dark and most people were probably asleep. She crept out the door and ran out of the building to the woods nearby.

Another flash and now I was a room with creaky floor boards and old furniture. Looking around, it seemed awfully familiar. A girl was sitting by the door in a chair but I couldn't see her face but her hair was the same color as the little girl's.

The door opened and another girl walked in. But it was dark in the house and I couldn't make out anything but the figure. "Where have you been?" The brown-haired girl in the chair piped up. "I was worried sick."

The other didn't answer. "Hello? Are you listening to me? Jess…" Then the other girl jerked forward and yanked the girl out of the chair and pinned her against the wall. After struggling, the brunette was turned around, and the other girl twisted her arm, pushing her to the ground.

"Not Jess. Jezebel!" Then the light illuminated the brunette's face.

"Amanda?" I gasped.

But before I could do anything, there was another flash and I was in a hospital room. A woman sat in the bed, smiling at a little baby. She started talking to her husband. "He's adorable." She smiled.

"He is. And probably smart, too." They both had strong British accents. "I'm going to teach him everything I know."

Another flash and I was in a child's room with toys all neatly placed in a cubby, looking almost unused. "But I don't want to." A little red-headed boy whined.

"Until you can tell me all the temperatures for mild, moderate, and sever hypothermia, you can't play with any toys. Or watch the telly."

The boy sighed and began to recite the temperature. When he was done, the man, unsatisfied, shook his head. He recited them differently now and his father smiled, nodding and handed him the toys.

Another flash. "But, Dad, I don't want to become a doctor!"

"Your great grandfather was a doctor in the army. Your grandfather was a doctor and I am a doctor. You'll be the next generation, Dell."

"Don't call me that, Dad! I keep telling you to call me Philby. And I don't want to be a doctor, for the thousandth time! I want to work in technology."

I had to take a double-take. That was definitely Philby! But he was like twelve years old.

"Fairy godmother!" I shouted. But nobody answered. Another flash. Now I was in front of large building. An orphanage according to the inscription in the front. A woman hurried past in the rain, up the steps. She placed a basket on the floor. For a moment, she hesitated, but then knocked and ran away.

I watched her pull out a phone and call someone. "I did it, okay? I gave her away." She cried. "With her parents gone, she could use someone to love her. Just for a little while. We didn't have to shove her into an orphanage so quickly."

Back at the orphanage, a woman hand opened the door and found the baby. She picked her up, cradled her in her arms with a smile, before noticing the rain and rushing inside.

Another flash. I was in a large cafeteria with tables of wood and paint peeling off the walls.

"Psh," a little six year old girl scoffed at another, with pale skin and almost translucent blond hair. "My power is so much cooler." She taunted. "I can start a fire with my mind. Watch." She stared at a cloth draped over the table and it soon caught fire out of nowhere.

A woman came over and scolded her. "Fairlies can't use their powers willy-nilly like that. You need to learn self-control."

_Fairlies? This is Jess! It has to be! _"Fairy godmother!" I yelled. "What is this!?"

"Hey." The small brunette from before, nudged Jess. "I think that's a pretty cool power." The blonde smiled.

Another flash. _Ugh! Quit it with the flashes!_ "You will be my slave, my minion, my apprentice. I will teach you all I know, but you must only obey me." That was Maleficent's voice, no doubt.

"Yes, master." I watched as Jess's blonde hair turned black, and her grey eyes turned to a dark color. "I promise to only listen to you."

"Good." The evil fairy came out, green smile bigger than ever.

No flash this time, but I was in another scene none the less. I still didn't quite understand what was going on.

"Come on, baby girl. Stand up for mommy." The blonde said to the child. She held onto the baby's hand and lifted her to her feet.

As soon as she let go however, she fell straight down again. "Well, we have time to work on that, don't we? Yes, you'll be perfect." The mother smiled. "Without a single flaw. I promise."

Now I was in a large gymnasium. "Again! Do it again! I want perfection!"

Charlene, around ten years old now, ran across the gym. Her outfit was red and blue with rhinestones and shimmers. She was smiling immensely. Then she stopped at the end, turned and took in a deep breath. Suddenly, she sprinted, doing a cartwheel, summersault, and other gymnastic moves I didn't know the name of.

I applauded her, though I knew she couldn't hear me. "Was that okay, mommy?" She smiled widely at her mom. Her gaze was begging for approval.

"No! Now do it again!"

I was now sitting on a bed. It was soft and comfy. But it was sure as heck a teenage girl's room. Charlene marched in angrily. Her mom followed.

"You can't keep eating like that, Charlene!" Her mother scolded. "Do you want to get fat?"

"No, mom! Of course I don't. I just don't see the harm in just a little snack."

"If you eat a _little_ snack every day, it'll start adding up. And adding up! You'll gain weight!"

"Okay!" Charlene screamed. "I'm sorry! My gosh! I didn't realize how horrible it was!"

"You can be on a diet. I'll help you. My coach showed me a lot of diet tips when I was your age."

Charlene groaned. "Mom, I don't see what the big deal is."

"You have to be skinny. And with your eating habits, that'll never happen."

Now I was in a living room. A woman, holding her baby close to her, sat next to her husband. Two boys sat nearby. "Can I hold her, mom." One asked. He looked around ten. Meanwhile, the other looked about four.

"Of course you can, sweetheart. Come here. But be very careful." She gently placed the baby in the boy's arms.

"This is going to be lots of fun. A little sister we can tease and taunt and play pranks on." He told his brother. The other laughed.

"Oh, stop it, you two!" Their father laughed. "You'd better promise to be nice to your sister."

Their mom rolled her eyes when the two just laughed mischievously.

Suddenly, I found myself in the middle of the road. In front of me was something I'd only expect to see in a movie or CSI episode. It was a horrific car crash. There was blood on the ground and a twenty-something year old being tested for drinking. An ambulance was parked nearby. There was shouting from inside and I walked over to see what was happening.

"Sir! Sir, stay with me!" A woman yelled, performing CPR on the man.

A little girl, about six years old, looked up, teary-eyed at her two older brothers. "Is daddy going to be okay?"

The eldest picked her up. "I don't know." He was crying. So was the other boy.

"I don't think he's breathing!" The lady screamed.

The little girl started screaming. "Daddy! Daddy!" Over and over again.

"Wills." I choked.

Next thing I know, I was on the sidewalk along a row of houses. In front of me, Willa was being followed by a small gang of girls.

"Hey, freak!" One shouted at her, laughing.

"Leave me alone!" The thirteen year old girl yelled back.

"Oh, please. Don't act like you don't enjoy this. This is the only time anyone in school talks to you. You're too much of a loser for people to even like."

"Shut up!" She screamed, slamming the front door to her house. "Mom? Mark?" No one answered. She ran upstairs and checked all the rooms. When she didn't find anyone, she was near tears. "Why aren't you ever here!?"

The African American woman pulled her baby back towards her as he tried to shuffle across the carpet. "He's so energetic. I can't imagine how much of a hassle he's going to be growing up." She laughed.

"You look a little scared, honey." Her husband came and sat beside her, putting an arm around her.

"I just don't know if I'll be any good at raising a child."

"Nonsense, you'll be amazing." He kissed her. Meanwhile, the baby was crawling away again.

Then, I didn't know where I was. The entire room was dark, pitch black. I couldn't see a single thing. Abruptly, I could see a small glow, a little red light. It grew quickly and I jumped back at the realization. It was a fire!

It kept growing and growing until it engulfed me. Then I opened my eyes and was standing in an rather empty room. There were a few shelves with pot and clay on them but not a lot. The front door opened and in came Aunt Jelly, followed by a little Maybeck.

"You're going to be staying with me now." Aunt Jelly smiled. "Think of it like your visits to my house but permanent. He laughed.

"Okay, I need to go upstairs real quick to get something. Now stay still while I'm gone." She left for a moment. While she was upstairs, she heard a loud clatter and rushed down to see what happened. "Oh, Terrence." She sighed.

The six year old was surrounded by broken clay pottery and bottle of paint were dripping all over the place. He smiled sheepishly up at her.

"Terrence Maybeck! Get down here!" I watched as Maybeck came cautiously down the steps. I could tell by the look on the thirteen-year-old's face that he was pulled away from something her was highly focused on.

He then entered Crazy Glaze. By now it was a real store, with shelving and pot and paints and everything it is today.

"Yeah, Aunt Jelly?" He asked, taking a seat on one of the stools in the closed shop.

"Your teacher, Ms. Rachels, just called. She said that you've been extremely disruptive and that you've been skipping homework assignments."

"That's not true. She has it out for me or something. I just talk a few times in her class and miss a couple of assignments."

"Terrence!"

"I'm not disruptive, I swear. Trust me, there are kids in that class that are so much more talkative than me."

"That's beyond the point. If I get another call, you're grounded for the next month."

"Fine. I'll do better. I promise."

Now there was another flash. When I looked around, it took me a while to acknowledge where I was. I was in the waiting room for the Disney Host Interactive job. This was the room I had stayed in before they told me I got the gig and introduced me to the others.

"Wasn't that a lovely ride through memory lane?" Fairy godmother asked from next to me.

"What's going on?"

"You made a wish. I'm making it come true."

"What wish?! I never made a wish! And what was that?"

"Those were your friends. Their memories, their past lives." She replied. Then she pointed to the doors that led to the recording room. "Right through those doors, their lives hit split in the road."

"But-" It was too late, she was already gone.

Someone walked through the doors and looked at me. "Finn Whitman?"

I nodded. They gestured for me to enter so I got up from the chair and walked in. I sat down next to the others. "Welcome. We've brought you all in here today to announce that we have chosen you five children to be our DHI's. Congratulations: Isabella Angelo, Donnie Maybeck, Dell Philby, Charlene Turner, and…"

"Finn Whitman!" I groaned, pulling the pillow over my head. "Get up. You're going to be late for school!"

I turned and looked at the clock on my bedside table. "I still have like ten minutes."

"Fine, but you'd better not be late." She walked to the door. "Breakfast is ready if you're going to come down with time."

She seemed in a way better mood than yesterday. I wondered what happened. Never in my life had I ever seen her get over something this quickly. I got dressed and, suspicious about her mood, made my way downstairs.

"Mom," I sat at the counter as she fried some pancakes. "I'm sorry about last night. I didn't really mean what I said."

"I know you didn't mean it. But that doesn't mean I'm just about to forgive you."

"Can you please uplift my punishment? I'm sorry. I was only upset because of the whole DHI thing."

"Finn, I keep telling you, you have to get over that. Just because you didn't get the job doesn't mean you have to be so upset about it."

"Didn't get that job? What are you talking about?" Then I heard the bus. "Never mind. Gotta go. See you later, mom."

**Longest chap ever! YAY!**

**Yeah I really don't know what to think of it. So I want your opinions. Please read and review! Pretty please! With whipped cream, sprinkles, and lots of cherries on top!**

**Kisses and I hope that 2013 is your year! Resolutions, I will fulfill you!**


	2. This Is My Life turned upside down

**1/17/13**

**YAY! I finally pretty much qualify for my image of Willa since my birthday just passed!**

**From what you're about to read, you might assume that the entire multichap will be from Finn's perspective but don't worry it won't be.**

**BTW the surprise is still coming. Hope you actually like it and don't unwrap the present and then ask for the receipt.**

**Well, then, READ!**

**Finn's P.O.V**

On the bus ride to school, a weird feeling surged through me. I couldn't place it quite accurately in any category I would have tried to. The closest I could come to associating it with something was the night before, when I felt magic. But now it felt dark, like when you watching a movie as a kid and someone dies and, even though there's a happy ending, there's a sense of grief. Something felt misplaced.

But it passed too quickly for me to put much thought into it. And I assumed it wasn't important so I decided not to either way. However, one thing was still irksomely lingering in my head: my dream the night before.

I must have been a dream. Of that I was certain. But there were other details I was stuck on. Like how I didn't recall getting out of the situation with the O.T.'s. Or ever looking for the fob and returning. The last relatively normal scene I could bring up was my conversation with Fairy godmother but even so, had I gone back to the others afterward?

The only explanation for this was the occasional amnesia effect. As one of the side effects of 2.0 we would sometimes wake up with cloudy, vague, or complete loss of memory from the night before. It was infrequent but, while something we didn't worry about much, could cause potential problems such as forgetting where we left to fob.

Suddenly, the bus lurched to a stop in front of the school entrance and the mass of students filed out. On my way down the hall to my locker, I spotted Amanda. I couldn't say I didn't feel slightly uneasy to be facing her after the shame of what I'd said last night.

Yet, after a long relationship with her, I have come to understand that the best way to get her to forgive and forget is to smother her with affection and kindness. And lots of kisses. So I walked up behind her and, wrapping my arms around her waist, whispered in her ear, "Hey, baby."

I turned her around and kissed her. But when I pulled away, she didn't give her ordinary giggle. Instead, she slapped me. Across the face. _Hard._

"What's the matter with you?" She screamed. This caught the attention of a lot of the people nearby and, as they watched, I could feel my face grow hot.

"Um…I can tell you're still mad about last night but-"

Ignoring my comment, she cut me off, adding, "You can't just waltz up to me and _kiss me_! I have a boyfriend!"

I didn't know what to say. Was this some kind of pretend-we're-not-dating routine as a form of revenge? I mean what I said the night before was cruel and rude and unnecessary but I'd never imagine Amanda using this as punishment. "Um…"

"Hey, Whitless! You messing with my girl?" I heard from behind me. Turning around to see who called Amanda, _my girlfriend_, their girl, I found myself in an even more puzzling situation. Luowski.

Okay, no way would Amanda find it funny to play make-believe girlfriend with Luowski for a week or so to show me I'd done wrong. Not in a million years. Impossible in every way imaginable.

"You deaf, Whitless? I _said_ 'You messing with my girl?"' He grabbed hold my shirt to keep me from running and was just about to nail me right in the face when a teacher poked his head out of his classroom door.

"Hey! Any form of violence in this school and you'll both find yourselves in detention for the next month!" He shouted. Luowski looked down at me and snarled; his way of saying "We'll finish this later". Then he let go, wrapped an arm around Amanda's somewhat exposed waist and they both stalked away.

I was still baffled and shocked motionless when the warning bell sounded. Waking me out of my trance, I grabbed the rest of my stuff and headed to class.

During first period, I was weaving in and out of focus on the lesson as the recurring thought popped in again and again. What the hell happened back there? Something was off, way off. I knew Amanda would never stoop this low for a joke or castigation. This was just off the charts freaky.

Later, in the middle of the day, I tried to get my head off it. I decided to go check on my grades and see how far fro was in language arts. I needed to know what grades I had to get in the following tests to bring it up and if it was possible at all to do it within the nine-weeks.

Pulling up a seat to the computer, I turned it on and opened the internet. I went to the school website and logged on. The weird thing was, when I went to my grade book, the letter grade read B. And a high one at that. Either my mom had been wrong (which she never is) or my teacher changed a grade. The latter seemed unluckily because no change could have brought it up that much.

When I got home that afternoon, I walked, hypnotized into my room, completely mystified by the contents of the day. Maybe last night wasn't a dream. But, no, it had to be! Right?

"Fairy godmother." I moaned to thin air, hoping she'd hear me through the nothing. She must have because the next thing I know, she's in my bedroom, staring with disgust at the floor.

"Child, you truly _must _clean this pigsty!"

"Forget that. What's going on? What wish did you grant?"

She sighed. "You made a wish, loud and clear. One that insulted your friends, quite frankly. You said you wished you'd never become a keeper."

I was paralyzed for a moment. It wasn't until my lungs began to burn with intense fury that I realized I wasn't breathing. "You're kidding."

"I am not. You said those words. And you meant them! Now, they're as true as they possibly could be."

"B-but …but you said…" I didn't know how to react, really. "So, they don't remember me? The other keepers, I mean. Or Wayne? Or anyone I've met through my experiences as a DHI?"

"Exactly. The only ones who really can remember your other life are you and I. Magic is strange like that."

"That's why Amanda acted as if she didn't know who I was?"

Fairy godmother nodded. "You've never met. Well not really. Surely, she's seen you around school but neither of you have made acquaintanceship."

"So I don't cross over, I don't fight evil Disney villains, and I don't walk around as a hologram in Disney and act a guide to strangers?"

"No. That's no long part of your life. This is your life."

"Finn, can you come down and help your sister set the table? Dinner's almost ready." My dad called from downstairs.

I turned to the door, hesitating a moment. My life was not what it was before. My life was back to what it was like, two years ago, before I ever got a job working as a DHI. This was going to feel so odd.

"Coming." I yelled down to my dad. But when I turned to finish talk to Fairy godmother, she was already gone.

…

"How was school today?" My dad asked me when we were all settled at the table, eating dinner. This took me by surprise; I couldn't remember the last time he had shown the least amount of interest in my life.

"…good." I said awkwardly, not really knowing how to respond to that.

"How were tryouts?"

"Tryouts?"

My father stopped eating and looked up at me. "You didn't forget, did you?" He laughed. "Come on, Finn. All I ask is that you _tryout _for the wrestling team. Is that so bad?" The weird part was that he didn't even seem mad at me.

"Sorry, dad. I really did forget. I'll see if I can try out tomorrow."

"Fine. But don't go chickening out. I know you don't really like wrestling, but it's good for you and I want you to at least try to get on the team." He smiled at me, encouragingly. Okay this is _too _weird.

"Yeah. You should so try. You'll get in for sure. I've seen you, you're really good." A that, I thought my mouth would have been handing open for sure. Did Sarah really just say that, and without any sarcasm whatsoever? Like she really meant it.

My life has officially been turned upside down.

Later, when I was in my room, getting ready to go to bed, Fairy godmother reappeared. I nearly jumped out of my skin.

"Geez, can't you give some kind of warning signal before you flash in here?" I muttered, pulling my pants up over my boxers.

"I'm sorry." She laughed. For a moment, she stared intently at her wand, which was pointed towards me. "I can sense your happiness. Why are you so overjoyed?"

"Your wand can read my mood?" She nodded. I shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I just forgot how good it felt for my dad to not despise me. And my sister to not be a pain."

"You enjoy having your old life back?" She asked. I grinned.

"It's amazing. When you said I never became a Keeper, I thought it was going to be horrible. It's not horrible at all!"

"And you don't miss your friends."

"Sure, I guess I'll miss them. But I'll make more. I mean, this is an alternative to my old life right?"

"Well, yes, but, Finn, I don't think you understand how this works."

I sat on my bed, listening to her. "What do you mean?"

"You will have friends, but not like those. There's always going to be a _What if…_ or an _If only_… that in an alternative life, would have been amazing. Fate makes sure that you always have enough to make your life stable, but that doesn't guarantee complete happiness."

I looked at her, not really getting it. "I don't understand."

She sighed. "You'll understand in good time."

"You're crazy. Because this is exactly what I want."

"For now." She muttered, then vanished.

"Whatever."

…

The next morning, I woke up feeling great. I couldn't describe it. Waking up on a Saturday morning after a restful night _not _spent chasing overtakers is amazing. I was able to sleep a lot better because I wasn't woken up by text from the others who wanted to talk about the night before.

When I got to school, I went back to my locker, careful not to cross by Amanda or Luowski. However, I did pass someone on the way there. I was surprised to see Charlene.

There was just one thing different…what was it? Oh, right, she was thin! I mean, she was lean before but now she was a twig. She looked so skinny. Maybe not skin and bones thin, but so close it was scary.

I shook it off at the time. I figured it must have been in my imagination. Or she was on one a diet. Girls do that, right? Right? They do weird things to lose weight.

Later on that day, however, I saw her at lunch and there was nothing in front of her. Like nothing. No home lunch. No school lunch. Nada. And she seemed perfectly fine with it. Her friends were offering her some of their lunch but she refused.

My heart sank. That wasn't a dream. I remembered the conversation she had with her mom. She would do anything to be thin.

With this in mind, I got up with my lunch and crossed the cafeteria. I was careful to look down occasionally and make sure that no one would stick their leg out to intentionally trip me as this happened quite often to kids in our lunch room.

"Hey." I said sitting down.

"Hi." She smiled cautiously, the playful look she was giving me clearly asked _And you're sitting here because you want to talk to _me? Her friends raised their eyebrows, smiling at the two of us. They seemed to think I'd come to flirt.

"I noticed you don't have any lunch. You must be hungry. Here take mine."

She shook her head, her cheeks just a smidge on the pink side. "No, I couldn't."

"You could if I'm offering."

"It's okay. I forgot my lunch money this morning, but that's my problem. Seriously, I'm not even hungry."

"Come on, you're not going anorexic are you?" She laughed at that and shook her head. But all it took was that lapse beforehand, that abrupt ashamed look. The dark, little twinkle in her eyes, to tell me I was right. My heart sank all the more. "Then, eat. You're a growing girl, Charlene Turner."

She gave me a flirtatious smirk, "You know my name?"

"It's hard to forget the Head of the Sophomore Cheerleaders." She blushed. Just then, the bell rang and she stood along with her friends to leave.

"See you around." She said, with a wink. I sighed. _I really hope she doesn't think I _like_ her._

…

"I tried out today." I told my dad at the dinner table. He grinned at me, proudly, anticipating.

"So…how'd it go?"

"I made it in."

He patted my shoulder, "That's my boy. I knew you could!" This kind of encouragement from my father would have felt nice is I wasn't still fixated on Charlene.

She couldn't have been anorexic, could she? Maybe she really did forget her lunch money. But, then why would she look so thin?

"…_Marianne Silta with more on the scene."_

I heard from the television. The Channel 8 News was on, as it always had been during dinner time way back when.

"…_It really is a tragedy. Josh Angelo, the victim's older brother, said he was just visiting from college when he found Isabella unconscious on the bathroom floor. Isabella Angelo has been driven to the hospital, but the paramedics say that her condition cannot be estimated at the moment."_

I thought I heard wrong. They couldn't have said Willa. No, they couldn't have. "Can you turn that up?" I asked Sarah, who had the remote beside her on the table.

"No. Whenever I'm watching something, mom always makes me-"

"Sarah, turn up the volume." I said slowly, and I think she got the message from the way I was glaring at her.

Immediately, she grabbed the remote and turned up the volume. _"Even now, people are wondering what could have driven the darling DHI to something as drastic as a suicide attempt. The fourteen-year-old apparently over-dosed herself. Josh had nothing to say to this besides the fact that all he can do now is wait, and hope that he had not come too late."_

"Oh my god." I muttered under my breath. The room was spinning.

"Finn, are you alright?" My mom asked me.

"Take me to the hospital."

"What? Finn, don't be absurd."

"Mom, please, this is serious."

"It's nine o'clock. What's so special about that girl that you have to go running to the hospital? Who is she?"

My entire family was staring at me, confused. Now my vision was darkening by the corners and I had a sudden temperature flash. "No one. She's…" I couldn't say a friend because technically she didn't even know me. "Can I be excuse?"

"Oh…okay." My mom nodded, still puzzled by m strange reaction.

I trotted up to my room, lucky I hadn't hit anything in the process as my sight was so off. I laid down on my bed, trying to get the sound of ambulance sirens from the television out of my head. She had to be okay. Willa. Oh, poor Wills. And Charlene. Charlie too. It's all my fault.

"My wand tells me you aren't in such a good mood today." I grabbed the closest thing to me, unfortunately it was only a pillow, and flung it at her.

"What did you do?" I growled. "Why are they like this?"

"I've told you several times, Finn. They hit a split in the road when they entered those doors. You changed fate."

"I didn't mean too." I cried. "How do I fix this? I take it back. Just bippity boppity boo and undo the wish. Please."

"Finn, we both know that I can't do that. That's not how magic works."

I sighed, burying my face in my pillow trying to drown out the world. "So what do I do?" I whispered.

All I heard before falling asleep was the small murmur of, "Be their friend."

**Okay, sorry if it was bad. If you hated it. Please, give me suggestions. I want to hear what you guys think. Please REVIEW!**

**Yeah I know poor Charlie and poor Willa. I'm an awful person. If this is getting too intense for some people, maybe you could tell me and I'll try to tone it down a bit but it's going to be sorta like this. Like depressing, yet sadly true in most people's lives, situations.**

**And if that conversation between Finn and Charlene was weird, sorry. Haha, whenever I don't eat my lunch, my friend always asks if I'm going anorexic so I couldn't help but add that.**

**SO….Please read, review, and request!**


	3. Like he cared

**Okay so you guys have probably (hopefully) read the new multi-chap by kingdom-keepers-rule and me! Ah I can't believe we're working together! It's awesome! But yeah, just wanted to get your opinion on it! Please! So...here's the newest chap. Hope you like it!**

Charlene's P.O.V

I still can't stop thinking about the way he said it. _"You're not going anorexic, are you?"_ He sounded so sure of himself, like he could tell. I'm probably just paranoid, he couldn't know. I mean, who's to say I don't scarf down food as soon as I get home? My friends sure seem to think that, because they stopped confronting me about my fasting through lunch.

Aside from that though, I was also hung up on the way he just waltzed over and tried to make me eat his food. Most people aren't so blunt. He seemed like…I don't know…like he _cared._ Which I'm positive isn't true. I mean, he's just a stranger. But, he was so cute. Maybe I'll see him again tomorrow. I'd like to talk to him about something other than lunch. He was different from the other boys, I could tell.

"Charlene, is that you?" My mom calls from the kitchen as I close the front door and throw my book bag on the living room floor.

"Yeah, mom. Whatcha making?" I can already hear her say it. _Just a little salad, sweetheart._

"Just some hummus wraps, sweetheart." Oh, look she's spicing it up a bit. But it's not so much better, my stomach will feel just as empty and I'll feel just as starved. Just as long as I see double-digits on the scale, however, I'm fine.

"Sounds good. I'm gonna go get started on my homework."

"Okay, honey. Dinner will be ready in about 15 minutes." I ran upstairs to my room, truthfully my safe haven from my mother. I wish she'd just start acting like a regular mom, who I could take to about boys and school problems. But all she seems to know is how to force me into a size 2 dress and how to put up a good show.

That's why daddy doesn't even know. When he's home from his business trips, we eat normal dinners with a big chicken wing and sides of corn and bread rolls. Something over 300 calories. He doesn't suspect a thing. But as soon as he's gone, I'm back to my calorie-count app and one-meal diets.

My room looks like any other average American teenage girl's room. At first glance. But with some scouring, you'll eventually find my collage. It's a turn-to, a guide. Really, a piece of cardboard with clippings from magazines, models and celebrities, thin ones at that. Every time I feel the need to eat something, I just take a look at it and remind myself it's not worth it.

For now, I'm just glad it's my off day from gymnastics. The muscles all over my body still ache from yesterday and I don't know how much I could have endured today if I had to.

I stop by the mirror above my desk, staring at my reflection. Frankly, I am thin. It's pretty. It's attractive. I'm not fat or overweight. First I stare at my face and how my cheeks concave with emphasis, showing off my facial features nicely. All of the other girls at school still have plump, round faces, with baby fat. I don't. My hands move to pull up my blouse and I turn, glaring at the infinitesimal bulge of fat on my stomach. What a disappointment. I have to work out now, burn off the extra calories. Next, the involuntary drive of my hand to my wrist. I am satisfied to see my forefinger and thumb touch with a decent amount of additional space.

"Time for dinner." My mom called from downstairs. Finally, I'm starving.

Amanda's P.O.V

I saw that boy at school again today and I can't help but think about him on my way home. My blood is still boiling. _The nerve of him! How dare he kiss me! With those soft lips. And that cute smile of his. Those dreamy eyes. Wait-snap out of it!_

Mentally, I slapped myself at that moment. How could I be falling for him? Ugh, what a disgusting excuse of a boy! Who just goes around kissing girls when they have a boyfriend?!

Luowski was defensive when it came to our relationship; a boy can't _breathe _near me on his watch. He's not so much protective as he is commanding in this. It seems he's always there with the reminder that I can't talk to boys, or sit with boys, or eat lunch with boys. And now I'd never hear the end of it because of that stupid kiss in the hallway!

I glared at the ground, hatred washing all over me. All I could do was get angry, or blame people. Like him for being so difficult. Or that boy for kissing me. Or me for letting it happen. What I needed was someone to talk to, someone to listen to me and give me advice.

Tears spring to my eyes at the mere thought. It's still such a raw feeling to me, even though it's been two years already. To me, it still feels like just yesterday I had a sister. But, now, she's gone. I want her back badly, with all my heart and soul, no matter how much I know it's not going to happen.

I stopped while walking, pausing to stare up at my home. Humble abode. Though I was extremely lucky to have found an abandoned church someone in this area, I couldn't help but feel upset that I couldn't live like other kids.

With an enraged stomp, I marched up to the front door and toss it open. I'm not like other kids.

The stained glass window spread a marvelous mural of colors onto the creaky wooden floor as the sunlight passed through it. I sighed, sinking onto the hard mattress of my bed in the corner of the attic-like room. Unlike so many people, nothing is handed to me on a silver platter. I have to work for everything, all the way from the scarce food on the table down to the last pencil in my book bag.

Thank all things good that I was able to find a job to afford all of it. It's a simple one, but my boss is a very nice lady and pays me a little more than I know I deserve. My job is stacking pottery and paint and glaze along shelves and helping customers at Crazy Glaze. She has a son, who also works in the shop for a little extra cash. We talk a lot at work; that's not to say long, meaningful conversations or that we're friends, but he's an agreeable guy.

Of course, Luoski knows that I work there and isn't happy about that. He thinks that spending so much time in a store alone with another guy would affect me. I always have to remind him there are kids and clienteles surrounding us at all times.

He's just too clingy. To him, I'm property, not a person or human being. An object, possession, in his eyes. I want so badly to break up with him, but it seems when I'm about to, he knows just what to say to remind me that it's a bad idea.

Philby's P.O.V

My fingers flew over the key board with complete instinct, like I knew exactly what I was doing without really thinking about it. This was a hobby of mine, a joy for whatever reason. I just loved to work with computers.

I always tried to make situation that were difficult to solve, challenge myself. As the tasks grew harder, I started to like it more because the sense of victory would overcome me when I had completed them.

"Dell!" My father shouted at me from across the table, "Are you even listening to me?"

I sighed, "Yeah, dad." That was such a total lie.

"Listen to your father, sweetheart." Mom instructed me from the kitchen. "Please."

"I am listening to him." The reply left my mouth immediately, like a reaction that I had acquired. With a grunt, my dad stood and slammed my laptop shut with a bang, then walked off down the hall. When he returned, it was not in his arms anymore, as he must have disposed of it in one of the drawers in his bedroom.

"That's not fair!" I yelled. "I was working on something!"

He rolled his eyes, "You'll get it back when you start to respect me. When a father talks to his son, that son is expected to listen." His voice was stern, and his reprimanding eyes bared into me with harsh scolding.

In all honesty, I had stopped listening because it was always the same thing he wanted to talk about. The great lectures of the medical world. But I hated them! No, that's exaggerating. The truth is that, while I thought remedial studies were interesting, I really had no concern whatsoever in pursuing a career in such an occupation.

Of course, my father, coming from a long line of doctors, thought this was just an act of rebellion. He also found if very offensive that I wanted to 'break our tradition'. But how could I do something if my heart just wasn't in it?

Technology was my kryptonite. I couldn't stop myself from quickly finding fascination in the complex training. It felt like I was born to work on it, as though I was put on this earth to labor in the knowledge of computers. My father had other plans.

"Now, you should have been studying the common symptoms of encephalitis, like I told you to." He began, in his 'teacher voice'. I grumbled in annoyance.

"Dad, you can't be serious. You're not really going to quiz me on it."

He leaned forward in his chair as though to say 'And why wouldn't I?', glaring at me over the rim of his glasses. "I am. List the symptoms from most common to least common."

"This is stupid! I didn't study for this! I don't have time to with all my homework and projects!"

Mom had stopped cooking, looking at us with an expression that showed she knew a fight was about to begin. A loud squeak was emitted when my dad stood again, sending the chair backwards, tumbling onto the floor.

"But you have enough spare time to fiddle with your computer for hours on end, don't you! When I was a young boy, I had never been so attached to a lousy piece of technology!"

"I don't spend hours on end, because you always take it away and don't give it back to me for days. And if you haven't noticed, our entire generation has an obsession with electronics! At least I'm trying to do something productive when I use it, rather than spend all my time on some stupid social network."

"Go to your room and stay there until you learn to speak to me with respect!" He shunned me.

"Only when you don't force your own opinion down my throat and let me work with technological studies!" I retorted, not bothering to budge until he replied.

"Never! My father, his father, and his father before him were all doctors, as well am I. And Dell Philby, you will be a doctor whether you like it or not."

"Then I guess I'm staying in my room for all of eternity." I stomped up the stairs and banged the door closed.

In simple words, my father didn't get me.

Maybeck's P.O.V

The last of the customers had just left the store and we were closing up for the day. I sighed, turning the sign, making it official. It had been a _long _day of work. Amanda, the other employee, was off today, so I was the one doing all the hustling and bustling.

Friday's were a good business day, and we usually get a lot of small children that just got let out from pre-school; they could be difficult beyond belief. After watching them scream and cry and whine, I would stand and wonder if having children when I was older would be such a good idea.

I whistled to myself while finishing with the last of the paint sets, setting them back on the shelves, in order of color so that they were easy to find. Cleaning off the tables was a harder task, since the glaze would harden on the surface and I would have to wipe it off with a lot of effort or scrape it off with a tool. Then I went about turning off the kilns, which, after a while, would lessen the warmth they brought and set the room in a cooler temperature.

Aunt Jelly was upstairs, finishing up with dinner, just like she always was at around this time. It was typical of her to wander off an hour or so before closing to prepare a good meal; something for me to look forward to for when I had completed my work.

But, despite how starving I was and how delicious the aroma of sausage and pasta was from upstairs, nothing could distract me from thinking about school. I knew there was a stack of homework waiting for me after I was done with my chores but I couldn't bring myself to do it. There was also a mile-long list of projects for me to complete, but I never did seem to find the time to do them, or at least well.

My grades were struggling due to this. Whenever I was done with my work in the shop, I was either too tired or had no drive left to make me do the homework. This infuriated Aunt Jelly, and she would always yell at me that she expected to see improvement and if not, I would be punished. She never clarified what exactly that meant, but I didn't really want to find out.

"Terrence, that girl, one of the DHI's, was her name Isabella Angelo?" She called down to me, all of a sudden.

This took me off guard, considering how random the question was. "Um…yeah, why?"

"Can you come up here real quick?"

:Sure, hold on." I shouted back. Leaving the rag on the table, I hurried upstairs and strolled into the dining room. "What is it?"

"She's on the news, Terry." I couldn't believe her for a moment, until the television announcer said it, confirming that she had attempted suicide.

I didn't know what to say for the longest time, and I just stood there, not making a sound. Immediately when I snapped out of my trance, I ran to the phone and called the others. Apparently none of them had been watching the news and they had no idea what had happened. At telling them, Charlene's reaction was first to gasp, loudly might I add, and they all asked if she was okay. I told them I wasn't sure but that we should go see her tomorrow if we could.

Later that night, I couldn't keep myself from further contemplating it. How could she do something so drastic? I wasn't extremely close to her, but I knew her well enough to know she was a very happy girl, a smart one, witty and nice and charismatic. Definitely not someone who would try to kill themselves. But, then, I guess I didn't know her well enough.

**Please, please, please, please, please tell me what you think! Pretty please with whipped cream and like a billion cherries on top! R, R, and R!**


	4. Because I need to feel

**2/23/13**

**Hey guys, I know it's short but I really felt like I own you an update so here it is! Haha I hope I can give enough information in here. There will be a little magic involved in the following chapters. Disney magic! ;)**

**Just a few disclaimers. Okay first: I don't own Kingdom Keepers. Sadly. But I do own a certain original character you'll see later in this chapter. And lastly, in the last chapter, I just wanna tell you guys **You don't need to be super skinny to be pretty! Okay? You're all amazing and wonderful and such great people! **Just wanted to let you know. All the thoughts were how Charlene imagines beauty.**

**Hope you enjoy!**

**Finn's P.O.V**

I sighed, standing in front if the hospital door, unable to think of what exactly to do. With great, intense desire I wanted to go in and see her. But she didn't even know who I was!  
Before I could stop myself and try to think over what to say in my head again, I had pushed the door open and was walking into the hospital room.

Willa, sitting upright in the bed, had been reading one of her many novels. As soon as she heard the door swing open however, she lifted her head and faced me. For a moment, her eyes stayed on mine, flashing with familiarity. But they quickly changed to more of annoyance than anything. "For the love of all things good, why can't you people just leave me alone?" She growled, slamming her book shut and setting it aside.

It wasn't one of those popular, all-the-rave series that everyone gushed about. Instead, it was an old Christopher Pike novel, one she loved to harangue with enthusiasm, prating about how the suspenseful plot was so captivating. This was just like the Willa I knew, the one I knew she still was.

What she said took me aback for a few seconds, since I'd never really heard this tone of voice from her before.

"Um..."

"Seriously!"

"What?" I finally managed; though one word wasn't much, it was a start.

"I've gotten enough 'visitors' for today. If you would kindly grab a number and wait your turn, I'd really appreciate it." She snapped, bewildering me.

"I'm sorry. I don't get what you're saying."

She rolled her eyes, "Listen, plenty of kids have come today. As of now, I am immensely aware of how worthless I am to this world. If you would gladly just remind me tomorrow, that'd be super."

"I didn't come here to call you worthless." I explained, surprised.

She scoffed. "What then? Tell me that I'm ugly. I have no friends. My family's a mess. Or, best of all, you wish I succeeded at my attempt. Sorry to disappoint, you'll just have to keep your hopes up for next time."

Suddenly, grief weighed down on my chest, making it harder for my lungs to expand and my heart to beat. How could she just say that with such ease?

"I would never say that."

"Sure, you wouldn't." She replied, sarcastically, leaning back and picking at her chipping nail polish.

"Seriously. People have been coming just to say that to you?" I asked, quietly.

She nodded, looking up at me. "Don't act so surprised. Like you didn't want to do exactly the same."

"I didn't!" I assured her.

"Right. Then why did you come?"

"I wanted to see if you were okay." I said, pulling up a chair and sitting next to the bed.

She stared at me a while when I said that, straight faced. "You don't even know me." She countered. "Who are you and why are you really here?"

I sighed. "My name is Finn. I really did come here to talk to you."

She raised an eyebrow, "Finn? Peculiar name."

I chuckled, "Yeah, it's short for Finnegan. You liked to tease me about it sometimes."

"I don't _know you_." She responded.

I shook my head, not really deciding on a way to respond to that. "Why did you do it, Willa?"

"What? Attempt suicide?" She said it casually, as though, in her mind, it wasn't such a big deal. "School. Home. Everyone. _Everything_. My life is…well let's just say, it's nothing worth living."

"But that can't be true. You were always happy. Always brightening someone's day. I remember you were the one with the big adorable smile on your face every day."

"I don't _know you_!" She argued. "Why do you keep saying you know me?!"

"Wills, I do know you."

"Don't call me that."

"Your real name is Isabella Angelo. Your favorite color is purple. You love to read."

"That's all easily obtainable information"

"You don't like your name because it's unoriginal and boring. You're a straight A student and a Disney lover. Your favorite book is Weekend. You like your co-worker Philby." She pursed her lips slightly, obviously still not buying it.

"When you were five your older brothers locked you in a closet for six hours while your parents were out. Your dad died in a car crash when you were six years old. Your mom hasn't been the same ever since. When your brother left to join the military, he gave you a stuffed bear and you still sleep with it because you think it chases away nightmares." This definitely surprised her. I didn't mean to startle her like that.

"How do you know all that?"

"I know you, Wills." I went to hold her hand, but she flinched, backing away.

She looked conflicted. Livid, dejected, and scared. And by _me_. I would never want to offend her; I would make sure anyone who dared to hurt her paid for it. Yet, here she was, utterly terrified of me. It scared me to see her this way. It was like all her happiness had been evaporated and what was left behind was a suffering girl, afraid of the world around her. I wanted to hold her and comfort her and tell her everything was going to be okay. I wanted to get her to trust me, to let me help her. But not like this.

"Get out." She told me, almost shaking.

"What?" I asked, even though I had heard her perfectly clear. This was not going as planned.

"Willa, please..."

"Stop!" She cried out. "Nurse! Nurse!"

All of a sudden, a small, bustling woman came in, alarmed. "What seems to be the problem?"

"Please make him leave."

The little lady walked over and grabbed my arm, "Excuse me, you have to leave."

"No, I have to talk to her."

"Young man, you have to go." She pulled on my arm but I stayed in place.

"No."

"I'll call security." She warned.

I didn't move. She let go of me and, high-heels clicking furiously at the floor, hurried out of the room. "Why are you doing this, Willa? Please, let me help you."

"You're _not_ helping me." She said, harshly. "Just leave me alone, _please_!"

"I know this is hard to believe but I _do _know you. And you know me. We're friends! Just listen to me! Hear me out."

"No! Give me one good reason I should believe you." She demanded, no longer intimidated or afraid, or at least not showing it.

I leaned, so that our faces were merely inches apart and I wouldn't have to speak loudly for her to hear me. She didn't cower. "The DHI's. Crossing-over. The Overtakers. The O.T.K's. I know about them. I know about everything. The Disney parks don't sleep at night and neither do you."

Now, gawking, completely gaping at me, she leaned back. For a moment, she examined my face. I didn't know what she was thinking but I could see the gears working in her head. She whispered something, but I couldn't make out exactly what.

Suddenly the door burst open and the nurse returned, now with a large man who came forward and seized me by the shoulders.

"Willa, you have to trust me!" I shouted. She still stared at me with puzzlement and awe. All I could think about was what she had whispered. _Your eyes are so green._

**Willa's P.O.V**

For hours, I just sat in my hospital bed and stared at the wall, thoughts lingering but I was too dazed to bring them forth and scrutinize them. Of all the kids, of all the people, rushing in or moving slowly with caution, to comfort or to scold, to nurse or to talk, it was him, that one boy, I was stuck on.

I couldn't bring myself to read or to turn on the TV. All I could do was remain still, thinking about him. He knew so much about me. Yet I couldn't even pin a place I'd seen him before. Not even his name sounded familiar. _Finn. _At least that's what I think he said his name was.

And then there was his eye color. _Green._ Maybe I was just paranoid. A lot of people had green eyes. And they weren't even the right shade of green. They were supposed to be neon, bright and unsettling. His were just a neutral shade of foliage, brilliant but not threatening.

Why did he come to comfort me? I didn't even know who he was! Why didn't I know who he was! Had I gone to elementary school with him? Was he a friend of my brother? But then it would be nearly impossible for him to know that other information.

A chill ran up my spine and I found myself shivering despite the warm temperature of the room. _No one _knew about our after-dark adventures. Sure there were rumors spreading, popping up here and there. But nobody had ever talked to me about it with such certainty. And even then it was usually a news reporter or someone. He was just a kid.

I sighed deeply, putting my face in my hands. Likeliness was it was just an abnormal amount of paranoia resulting from lack of sleep. With the amount of thoughts whizzing through my head, I hadn't gotten a wink of sleep in the past twenty-four hours.

Deciding to go with the story of suspicion, I pushed all thoughts of the boy out of my mind. Instead I just recapped the day, the visitors. The first had been Charlene, a fellow DHI. Blonde and perky, she was very friendly and we chatted a while when she came. She appeared so sorrowful when she spoke, as though upset by my doings.

Then, Philby. Finn had been correct in stating I had a crush on him. He seemed genuinely concerned, making me feel heartache far more painful than poison seeping through me.

Maybeck came as well. That visit had been a good pick-me-up. He always did have a way of making me laugh. Humorous and welcoming, he made it so that I couldn't help but feel it was the nicest visit of the day.

All the others had been far less inviting. Most of them were by the girls that constantly harassed and criticized me. Others by other kids from my school that I recognized but didn't know the names of; these didn't really speak, they just sat and stared for a few minutes before leaving. Either they were breaking under the silence or they had just come for the spectacle.

I don't know why I didn't just tell the nurse to send them away. In truth, I could have just told her not to allow visitors entirely. But I think a part of me needed it. Because I needed the girls to mock me. Because I needed to feel the Charlene's sorrow. Because I needed Philby's concern. Because I needed Maybeck's confidence. Because I needed to feel something, even if it meant just soaking up the feelings another person was radiating.

Honestly, the least pleasant (well, second behind the green-eyed-boy), had been by the 'leader' of the Kingdom Keepers. Cole. I wasn't about to admit any feelings of hatred, but I dislike him with great intensity. Several words come to mind about him. Egoistic jerk. Arrogant pest. Conceited imp.

The first thing he had done upon coming in was assuring me that if I tried anything so 'childish and publicly disgusting' again, I could kiss my job as a DHI good bye. I argued with him that he was well aware of how much I needed that job but he just took this as an invitation to further disparage my behavior.

It wasn't until he began to rant, openly yelling at me about how I was besmirching the name of Disney with my stupid actions, that I became fearful. The veins in his neck were bulging and his fists began to clench. I could almost feel bruises forming on my body by the look of rage in his eyes.

I tried to push the thought away; even at the mental image my skin was crawling with fear. There was a rap of the door, I didn't answer, but the person pushed it open either way, cautiously.

The girl standing before me was one that I had seen around my school often. She stared with mesmerizing eyes, almost holding a wicked twinkle. Her pale skin was set in deep contrast with her dark black hair. The corners of her red lips formed a small smile. I remembered her name. Jez, I think.

**A little OC in this one. Cole. Yeah, he's a jerk and he'll come up in some of the future updates. Isn't he a jerk?! So Willa gets quick a few visits, and yet she has distrust in the wrong person. We'll have to see what happens! R, R, and R! Please stick with the story!**


	5. The Enchanted Mirror

**Sorry this is a bit on the short side. I didn't even know if I was going to update today. This is just a filler chapter cuz I really wanted to put something up but I also really need to do my homework! Haha so enjoy!**

Amanda's P.O.V

I stood in front of the mirror, trying to force myself not to cry. I am not weak. I am _not _weak! But I couldn't help it. My mind was racing with the scene, reimagining it, like it was on replay.

Staring, my eyes daggered straight towards the bruises that had formed on my cheek and the slight black eye. I sighed, letting out a stifled breath as a tear rolled down my cheek, making it sting.

I knew there was no way people wouldn't notice. Truthfully, I might not be the girl that everyone focuses on, but that wouldn't stop them from detecting the shades of black and blue my skin was. But I really didn't want to ditch because that would just draw attention to me and all I want is to lay low and make sure no one realizes I'm a minor living alone in abandoned property.

But if I had to face him again, I think I might start to cry. Despite how often this went down, I never really did get used to it. A flashback of the episode came forth.

"_How could you just let him kiss you?! You're mine, not his!" Luowski shouted._

"_Please, just calm down." I told him, backing away, against the wall._

"_I am not going to calm down!" He slapped me, making me cry out, which only infuriated him more. "You had no right! I _own _you and that's that."_

"_I…I know." I stuttered, holding my arms in front of me, trying to protect myself. "It was out of my control. He just kissed me. I'm sorry."_

"_Oh, you're _sorry_?" He asked, sarcastically. "Is that it? You're gonna feel real sorry now!"_

_Mercilessly, he punched me square in the face, sending me stumbling onto the bed. There, he stood above me, wringing my neck in his hands. "Next time, think before acting like a slut!" He shouted, keeping his hands where they were._

_With all my force, I tried to push him off. I couldn't breathe. Choking, my breathing labored, I kicked and fidgeted. Finally, he got up and let go. "Maybe this time you'll learn." He said, before punching me again in the stomach, almost crushed my rib cage. I crumbled to the ground and he spit on me._

I know better than to tell anyone what happened. He has told me enough in the past times to make me positive it was a bad idea. If I told anyone that he abused me, he'd tell the police about me. If I broke up with him, he'd tell the police about me. My situation was at a dead end. I was between a rock and a hard place.

And my spontaneous kisser was not making it any easier.

I slipped on a covering sweatshirt, with a slight whine as my skin throbbed. No spaghetti-strapped tank tops for me today. No, no. I easily slid into my stretch skinny-jeans. After figuring that solved most of my problems, I moved slowly to my bed-side table. Maybe I'd have enough foundation or concealer to obscure most of the black of my under-eye.

…

Make no eye contact. Stare at the ground. _Please, _I silently begged, _please, nobody notice me._

I had survived the majority of the day without anybody seeing anything. But as I remembered the daggers Luowski was glaring at me, I found my hands were shaking with unease as I dialed in my locker combination. Hurriedly, I shoved all my necessary books into my book bag, quick to take off. I slid on my sun glasses.

_The door is right there. You can make it. _"Hey, Amanda!" I heard someone shout from behind me. Shit.

Giving this call not even the slightest amount of acknowledgement, I continued walking, pretending not to hear. But, just my luck, they were set on being annoyingly persistent.

"Hey, I really need to talk to you." The voice now came from right beside me, making me jump.

Looking at my pesterer, I groaned, finding my eyes fell on a bigger pain that I had anticipated.

"Listen, kid-"

"My name's Finn."

"Okay. Listen, Finn, you're just about the last person I really want to talk to right now." I responded, bitterly.

"I'm sorry about what I did yesterday. I… I thought you were someone else. But that's what I wanna talk to you about." He said, as we both continued to walk through the school parking lot.

I gave a small laugh, "Oh, yeah, sure. Let's pretend for a second I'm actually interested in this conversation. What is it that you've been meaning to say, exactly?"

"Um…not here. How does ice cream sound?" The boy replied quickly, looking around, anxiously.

"Calm down there, paranoia." I raised an eyebrow. "What's got you so on edge?"

"Oh, it's nothing."

"Whatever you say." I nodded, "But I really can't go anywhere right now. My parents won't be happy if I don't get home as soon as school ends."

He chuckled, "Is that so? Well, I'm sure they'll understand. It won't be long. What do you say, Lockhart?"

The sound of my last name snapped me awake, setting off an alarm in my head. But when I looked up to see his cheesy smirk and glittering eyes, I couldn't help but give a smile in reply.

"I guess it couldn't hurt." I grinned. "But you're buying."

…

"So," I said, when he returned with our ice cream, "Who's my mysterious look-alike?"

"Huh?" He asked, sitting down at the opposite end of the booth. We had gone to The Frozen Marble, a relatively popular parlor shop just by our school. I couldn't remember a time I'd gone, even though I had been living in Orlando for a while.

"You said you mistook me for someone else when you kissed me, didn't you?" He nodded slowly in reply. "So, who is it? A girlfriend, I would assume."

"Yeah, I guess you could say that." He stared down at the table, toying with the end of the napkin.

"She goes to our school?"

"Yeah. I really screwed up with her recently. I've been meaning to patch things up." He frowned.

"Well," I simpered, "With a cute smile like yours, it'd be hard not to forgive you. Plus, you're not such a bad kisser." _Did you really just say that?!_

At that, he quickly stared up at me. My cheeks turned a vivacious color pink as he smirked. "I'm a good kisser, huh?"

"I never said that." I countered. "It was a spontaneous kiss. I hadn't even seen it coming. So don't be getting a big head about it."

Absentmindedly, I took a spoonful of my ice cream. Immediately, my taste-buds protested, and I swallowed it with difficulty.

"You've mistaken me for a different type, Finn. Pistachio? So not the way I roll. Mint chocolate," I leaned forward and dipped my spoon into his ice cream, retrieving a good scoop of it, "Now, that's more my style."

He looked at the concave in his ice cream, then up at me. I rolled my eyes, "Don't worry, my spoon won't touch your side." A smile stretched across his face. "What?"

He shook his head. "Nothing."

Finn's P.O.V

As soon as I came home, I found I had a surprise visitor in my bedroom. "I've seen you've been growing a bit closer to your friends." She beamed.

"Some of them." I muttered, taking a seat at my desk.

"I think you're underestimating your power on this. They need you. Things are far worse than they seem, Finn."

I jumped up at this, angry. "What does that mean? One of my friends just tried committing suicide. The other had an eating disorder. And _my girlfriend _is dating Luowski. How could things be worse?!"

She sighed. "Finn, you've just stated the positions of how many people? Three? There are six lives we're dealing with. Now, maybe they're not worse off, but it sure isn't better."

"So now what? Am I supposed to just waltz up to Philby's house and say 'Hi, we used to be best friends. So would you mind telling me what's wrong with your life?' Or how about I go back to Crazy Glaze." I shouted. "Get a job there. Spy on him and see the insanity that is his world."

"Finn?" My mom called from downstairs. My mind went blank. Fairy godmother disappeared. I heard the sound of footsteps on the stairs and then coming down the hallway. The door to my room creaked open. "Finn, who we you talking to?"

"Um…Just Dillard."

"I heard yelling. Is everything okay?" She asked.

"Yeah, we were just arguing about Saturday. He wanted me to come over to play Call of Duty but I told him I had to study for a science test."

She looked a little suspicious of this, probably because I never miss video games for school. She shrugged it off however. "Alright. Dinner will be ready in ten minutes."

With that, she exited the room, closing the door behind her. Suddenly, Fairy Godmother reappeared. "That was close. You have to stop yelling like that." She reprimanded.

"Sorry." I apologized sincerely.

"Here," She tossed something onto my bed. "I borrowed something from a friend of mine. I think it'll help you."

I walked over and picked it up, realizing it was a mirror. "Wait, what do I-" But when I turned around, I found that she was gone.

Sitting silently on the bed, I stared down at the object in my hands. With its nicely engraved handle and pearly white frame, I recognized it immediately from Beauty and the Beast.

This mirror had one purpose. It was to allow the user to see anything they wanted to see. The first thing that came to mind was how useful it would have been when we crossed-over.

For a second, I stop and stared at the mirror. Then quietly, I whispered to it, "Show me Jess."

I gasped at the sight before me.

**Ooooh! Cliff hanger, huh? Well, I decided to introduce the mirror. I figured it would take too long to make Finn visit all of them just to figure out their situation and then have to help them through it. So I brought in some magic to speed things along!**


	6. When your heart gives up

**Ugh! The scrunched up lines and then separated! It's so annoying! Stupid spacing! Sorry little ocd rant there. So here's a little chap I was working on. The most annoying thing happened. I was writing part of it on a note on my ipod and accidentally deleted it! I hate when that happens cuz you can't retrieve it! Hope technology doesn't hate you as much as it hates me!**

Finn's P.O.V

No. No it couldn't be. Not Jess. Jezebel?! She was still under that frickin, because I made that stupid wish?  
Well let's see. She and Amanda ran away here. Thinking that she'd be of help to us, Maleficent put her under the spell. And the keepers never relieved her of it. So it must be.  
And the worst part is that's not even where it ends. Maybeck was failing his classes. Like absolutely failing. Aunt Jelly got a notice from the school informing her that if his grades continue like this, he'd have to be expelled.  
How could he flunk out of school? I knew him! He was a smart kid! The lowest grade he got in the eighth grade was a B. It's not like someone can just go from B's to F's so quickly. I mean going to high school is a big transition but still. Something wasn't right.  
And then there was Phil. When I had told the mirror to show him to me, I saw him in his room packing a suit case. Of course, naturally, at first I thought his family was getting ready to go on vacation.  
But then a few things hit me.  
First?  
There was no long weekend of break coming up, and Phil would never miss a day of school if he was on his death bed.  
Second?  
The entire house was quiet and dark, nothing signaling his parents were even awake.  
After he was finished packing, he started writing on a piece of paper, scribbling quickly.  
When he had gone to his closet to hide his bag, I told the mirror to zoom in on the paper (really cool piece of info not in the Disney movie, the actual mirror had the ability of zooming into the smallest of possible things in an area!) I was only half way through reading it when he had come back and shoved it into the drawer (bad side of this, it only lets you see where the person is, so I couldn't see in the drawer), but I got the gist of it.  
And to be honest, it horrified me. From what I understood from the letter, Philby was running away, supposedly because he feels his parents don't understand him. Philby. Running away. Leaving Orlando. Leaving Disney. Leaving the Keepers.  
The last to give up. The most determined to find a solution. He was throwing in the towel and leaving everything behind over this.  
No. No, it can't be. Not Maybeck, not Philby.  
Then, there was her. The girl I loved the most in the world. Not cared for, I mean a complete not platonic manner. I mean loved.  
I swear I'll kill him! That jerk! No, he couldn't hurt her! Not my Amanda!  
I was making a promise to myself that the next time I saw him, I would take both hands and break his neck. Or beat him until he's bleeding, black and blue all over.  
Luowski, you are a dead man, I promise you that.  
When I had asked the mirror to show me Amanda, at first all I saw was a dark, unadorned and fairly furnished room, unoccupied. It looked familiar. I heard voices in the background. Angry ones. Scared ones.  
Then they came into view. He was yelling, his face red with rage. She was staring blankly, looking both intense and defenseless.  
"Don't you ever listen to me, you worthless Mitch*? " he shouted, putting me at edge, fuming.  
She opened her mouth to speak, but even before she could utter the slightest of noises, he slapped her across the face, a disgusting smack emitted from the contact. My blood was boiling at this point.  
Now, she had the expression of a defensiveness. She'd had enough, or so that's the signal she was giving off. Outraged, she screamed, "All we were doing was talking! Learn to be less controlling."  
"That Whitless guy is trouble."  
At the sound of his nickname for me, I couldn't breathe. He was hurting her because of me?  
"Yeah, complete trouble." She said, sarcastically. "I could tell he was really into me so I started flirting back. Mhm, and we were planning to get together this weekend at his house!"  
"Don't be a smart-aleck with me!"  
"He's harmless! You're more trouble than him! I bet he doesn't beat his girlfriend. I bet he knows how to treat a girl." She retorted.  
"You think he knows how to treat a girl." He growled. I'd heard that tone before, it meant he had reached the summit of his anger. "I know how to treat a girl too."  
He grabbed onto her arms and pushed her full force onto the bed. Mercilessly, he began to climb her like a rock wall, putting down enough weight to hold her down. She was shouting, screeching for him to get off.  
"Stop." I whispered, my head spinning. "Please, stop!"  
The mirror turned off, and before the part of me that wanted to see what happened could turn it back on, I had shoved it into a drawer of my dresser by my and slammed it close.  
Now I was alone in my room, the darkness aproning my being, like a rag brought around to suffocate me.  
The truth of my friends lives more haunting the worst of my nightmares.

Charlene's P.O.V

The soft cushiony mattress below my sore body was not enough to relieve the pain that was aching from every breath I took. Staring at the black shadows cast along my wall from the outside world only made my migraine worse. It had been a rough day at gymnastics. I didn't have the energy to do even close to what my coach was pushing me towards. Of course, I couldn't disappoint her.

I choked on the air I was sucking in too quickly, a coughing fit following suit, making the agony all the shoddier. My body convulsed quickly and there was no ignoring the feeling I was going to puke soon. But I tried my best to force it back, knowing there was no way I could reach the bathroom in time.

It hit me suddenly, like a load of bricks being dumped onto my head, that I was going to be crossed-over that night, along with Cole and Donnie. With a groan, I tried to think of a way I could get out of the situation, but I knew that our schedules were pretty much locked. I was even more conscious of the fact that if I tried to bail, Cole would throw a fit.

I sighed, finding my bed now strangely welcoming. The pillows drew me in, imbibing me into a heaven of slumber. Resisting the temptation of pulling the enticing sheets over me and falling into the realm of sleep would have been impossible to do, if not for the knowledge of how shallow my ocean of dreams would be before I would have to wake up in a Disney hell-land.

But, of course, this wasn't a cautioning enough stop sign in my path to force me to halt. Soon, all I could fell underneath me was the cold, hard cement. Gravel scrapped at my skin, an unbearable penetration of flesh, given my condition.

Pushing myself up and raising to my feet, I took one look around, before coming to the conclusion that nobody else had arrived yet. Finding my way to the nearest bench, I plopped down and awaited the arrival of my fellow DHI's.

Trying to adjust to the lack of lighting, my eyes focused on this and that, making me dizzy. I shut my eyes quickly, the nausea escaping me at my hopes.

I had been staring at the ground a good long while, tracing the lining between bricks with my eyes, when I noticed a faint blue light not far from me. Looking up, I realized the more agreeable of my two companions had entered our midnight kingdom. His eyes met mine and I felt a sudden shivered as the cool brown sulked into my electric blue.

I waved him over and he, quickstepped, came to sit beside me. "Hey."

"Hi." I chimed in response. The night was an exaggerated chilly, giving me the eerie sense that someone was watching us. Before I could even ask him if he also felt it, his phone beeped. When he checked it, I could immediately feel the tension just multiply.

"We've got trouble." He told me solemnly, showing me the screen. The text read: **Get to Splash Mountain! NOW. **Neither of us gave it a second thought, both getting up and hurrying to find Cole at Splash Mountain.

Of course, this wouldn't have sounded too difficult for a couple of athletes. But my muscles refused to cooperate from the stiffness of gymnastics, and I took notice that I was trailing behind, probably without a chance of catching up anytime soon.

Suddenly, my side cramped severely and I stumbled, nearly falling forward. Every nerve in my body rebelled at once, resulting in a jolt of pain. It almost felt like my inner organs were failing me, like I was dying inside and I didn't even know it.

My heart beat echoed in my ears and throughout my entire body. I thought it was echoing off the walls. All of Disney could hear it. I could feel it in my blood, move in the flow up and down my arms and legs. A lopsided rhythm.

Still listening to the askew music of my own pulse, I hadn't even realized I was on the ground until I heard Donnie's shout. The melody stopped, and then all I could hear was the empty resonance of the park's melancholy and hum of crickets' songs.

"Charlene! Are you okay?" He rushed over to me, kneeling so that the vibrations of the world could now reach us both.

My lips moved but I didn't think any noise came out. But his eyes still stayed on me, the darkness not enough to blur away the concern in them. So instead I just nod. Because I couldn't say a lie out loud.

He helped me to my feet and I still felt a little dizzy when I stood, but I could tell I was for the most part fine. A fire had begun to burn in my chest, filling my lungs with a worst of smokes, a toxic air. The match must have stuck my heart because that was alive with flames as well.

This time, we slowed down a little as we neared the attraction, and he had spent most of the way there turning to look over his shoulder and check on me.

I was light-headed. I was light-hearted. The air was thin, but it was fine to breathe, however the thick wall of shadows behind me closed off the wind. I was enslaved by the night for once.

"Sh." Donnie warned, putting a finger to his lips to signal we had to be quiet. He had heard something. I knew it. I saw him pull his phone out and assumed he was texting Cole to tell him we were outside.

Not a minute later, there was rustling in the bushes nearby and both he and I turned, ready for the attacker. "Took you long enough." The person exclaimed.

"Cole?" I called out, surprised. "What was the emergency?"

The boy came out of the darkness, just below a street lamp so I could see him clearly. The blonde boy smirked, but not a friendly one. "It was a test, princess. One that you both failed." His hazel eyes shined with scrutiny as though he were a high king observing his noblemen. Drop the attitude, your majesty.

"What do you mean a test? It was a false alarm!" It seemed Cole had already worn Donnie's patience thin because he was taking absolutely no brashness tonight from him.

"Hey, hey. Cool it, dumbbell. I just wanted to see if you could react quick enough in a sign of trouble. By the time you got here, the villains would have had me for sure!"

"Damn it, Kraher!" He barked. "You think this is some kind of joke? Sometimes, it's nice to avoid running when it's not necessary." Donnie glanced at me and I knew he was thinking my episode on the way. "You know I wish it were real and the O.T.'s really did get you!"

At that note, he marched off in the direction we'd come, looking more angered than I'd ever seen him. Not wanting to be left alone with your highness of arrogance, I fled after him.

"Hey, you didn't have to yell like that." I muttered when I caught up.

"Yeah, I did. He's the biggest jerk I've ever met and he can't treat us the way he does!" He grumbled, except he didn't say jerk. "Are you feeling any better?"

"Um, yeah." I mumbled, "I guess I just got dizzy. Really bad practice today at gymnastics."

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, definitely."

The thing that scared me the most was that I was lying. Because back when I fell, I thought my body was giving up on me. Like my heart was saying goodbye.

**My apologies if it was short. Try to make it longer next time! Wanna know if you loved it or hated it or if you have any comments. So please READ, REVIEW, AND REQUEST! PLEEEEAAAASE!**


	7. Binary code

**Hiya! Random thanks to all the people who have been staying with the story! YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME!**

**So sorry I hadn't updated. It's been a work-load kind of week in school. Testing soon. Oh boy.**

**Also, would love it if you could check out my excerpt on KK Insider! The name's Rainbow_Hypnosis. Tell me what you think in your reviews if you can!**

**Without further delay, I give you chapter seven!**

Philby's P.O.V

My dad was at work. My mom was at some book club. I was home alone.

Maybe I was just being irrational. I mean, run away? That just seemed dramatic and stupid. It was just a vain attempt to get my parents to focus on my wants, not theirs. But there was no logic in the plan, either.

Where was I going to stay? I didn't have any money. And if I took my mom's credit card, they'd be able to track it down. I'd be lost and lonely, in a world I knew nothing about, really.

I caught a quick glimpse at the packed suitcase on my bed, hesitant. There was no way I could go through with it, right? But it would feel so good, the freedom. My parents wouldn't be there to tell me this is wrong, that career path is ridiculous, or just demand things of me I didn't want to put up with.

That's not to say I hated them. I loved my parents in reality. But…they don't know how to let go, they want 'perfection', of whatever their definition of it was.

Fiddling with the note in my hand, I stared out the window. This is ridiculous. But, then again, maybe that's why I wanted to do it. Try something new, unexpected. Yet, something this drastic? Would it be worth it?

A knock at the front door of my house. I was on red alert, my heart thumping a million miles a minute, my feet silent and stealthy on the wooden staircase. It wasn't one of my parents, that much I knew. My father was out till midnight _at least_ and my mum didn't stop talking about the book she was reading here at home, imagine over at book club. Yep, this was someone else. Who, exactly? I didn't know.

I peered through the peep hole, only to see a boy, roughly my age, standing on my porch, though I didn't recognize him. Slowly, I opened the door and leaned against the frame. "Hello…" I said, my British accent not seeming to frazzled him, even in the slightest. Most people would raise their eyebrows or something.

"Um…hi. My name's Finn. I just moved in down a few streets down. My laptop has some bugs or something and I heard you're good with this kind of stuff."

It was me who had to now raise an eyebrow. "Hm…uh yeah. I know my way with technology. Would you like me to take a look?"

He smiled. "That'd be great, thanks."

I invited him inside and he walked in, maneuvering into the living room, no problem. It wasn't like it was hard to find but it was like he didn't even have to think twice about it or let me lead him. Like he already _knew_ it was there.

"My name's Finn." He outstretched his hand toward me with one arm, the other keeping the laptop tucked safely.

I shook his hand, cautiously, staring at his eyes. Green. But they were natural, from what I could tell. "Dell. But I prefer to be called Philby."

His eyes shot open wide with surprise, reacting in a near perfect replica of any star struck fan. "Philby? As in _the _Dell Philby? The DHI?"

I grinned slightly; the awe and amazement still a wonder to me. Were we that famous? "The one and only."

"I saw one of the other DHI's on the news the other day. Willa Angelo…?" My heart stopped at the sound of her name. From his expression, he obviously could tell that he'd hit a touchy subject. "Sorry, I didn't mean to…"

"No, it's cool. I just…rather not talk about it." I said, taking a seat on the couch.

It was out of the mere sensitivity of the subject that I could not speak of it. The fact that, it was in no way inevitable, the fact that if I had only paid more attention, if I had just noticed…It pained me to think about what could have been so awful in her life to make her even contemplate the horrid escape of the mortal world.

We were quick to come to a fond acquaintanceship on the first day of recording. In the time that we sat together, talking, I felt a spark, a connection between us. Sweet and friendly, yet smart beyond that of most others, she was something different. But our relationship hadn't grown past that. Most of the time, we only talked about Keepers stuff. Never had I been close to her to actually talk about any kind of private life of hers, yet I now hoped she had put more faith into me. Maybe then I would have been able to help.

"Just set the computer on the coffee table." I said, quietly though, still deep in thought.

He obeyed, sliding it in front of me. It wasn't long before the techno nerd in me came out and I was lost in a world of binary code. "Wow, you really know your stuff, huh?"

"Yeah," I muttered while working. "I love this kind of stuff."

"You thinking of making a career out of it one day, or is it just a hobby."

I paused, deciphering a good answer. "I've been thinking about it."

"But…?"

"What do you mean?"

He laughed. "There's some kind of hesitance there."

I shrugged, still typing. "My parents have other plans for me. It's complicated."

"Not really." The boy stated, though there was not real way for him to understand. "Your parents can't make the decision for you. What you want to do is more important."

"Not in my father's eyes." I stated, finished up, and then handed him the laptop. "All done."

"Thanks." He muttered. Before he left, I'm sure I remembered him saying something. But I was too fixated on Willa to pay much attention.

She had always seemed like such a happy-go-lucky girl, and I'd found her girl-next-door attitude considerably attractive. It was more than just her smarts. It was the dreamy glint in her eyes and the twinkle in her smile.

Talking to her in the hospital room, seeing her so broken. That was horrifying and disheartening. At that moment, she might have not even been alive. It made me near break down, a cordial shattering that threatening to make my voice strain with tears.

How many times had she feigned that smile? Had all the times I'd found her optimistic attitude contagious been an act?

If it wasn't, I had to preserve what was left of the lighthearted girl she once was. I had to make up not for what I did do, instead for what I didn't but should have.

Maybeck's P.O.V

"So, you're looking for a job, huh?" I heard my aunt mumble from the other end of the store. I had just gotten back from school, dumping my heavy book bag at the base of the stairs and striding closer to the backroom. I listened intently, wondering who she could have been talking to. "Well, I guess we could always use an extra pair of hands but I don't know if I can afford…free?!" She shouted out, obviously bewildered by the suggestion.

Someone was volunteering at Crazy Glaze for no pay. Well…huh. It's not to say I wasn't grateful I could have another helping hand without Aunt Jelly have to scrape out the very last penny of her wallet, I was just surprised. It was an absurd proposal in a way.

"Well, that'll be splendid!" Her voice overflowing with joy, my aunt's delight was apparently hard to contain. "When can you start working?"

There was a pause as the other person spoke. In this moment, I pondered who it could be. At that point, I still didn't peek into the room, yet without knowledge of age or gender. Or anything for that matter. Entirely anonymous.

Either way I celebrated. _Yes!_ This unidentified savior has liberated me of part of my workload, meaning I would have more time for studying and doing homework- something my aunt had been on top of me about for a while.

"Alright, I'll see you next week then." The two walked out, Aunt Jelly with an ear to ear smile plastered onto her face. Then, I had gotten a quick look at the volunteer.

A boy, around my age, strolled out the front door of the shop. Chest-nut haired, he didn't have much of an unusual appearance, just like any average teenager, yet something struck me as odd about him. With a tall frame –maybe not as tall as me, but most people could not accomplish that- and a sturdy build, I knew he and I could share most of the physical labor.

"I just had a talk with the nicest boy." My aunt remarked, wiping down one of the tables. "Looks like we'll have someone extra coming in for a while."

Amanda would probably be glad to hear that; I had a feeling she was tired of lugging around heavy boxing and straining on her tip-toes to stack ceramics on high shelves. But she was a good sport about it, always joking around, with a big, genuine grin on her face. Not that I was interested, really. Don't get me wrong, she was an amazing and fun good-hearted girl, but she just wasn't my type.

Charlene, now she was something special. I didn't know what to make of my feelings for her. I knew it felt like I wanted to be more than friends, but how was I supposed to act on it? She was so beautiful, the most gorgeous girl I'd ever met. And she was so smart and funny and just so perfect. When I saw her fall in Magic Kingdom, I was terrified. I'd never seen her so vulnerable.

But back to Amanda. The addition to our staff would relieve both of us of some chores. It would most likely open her schedule to what I knew she liked the most about the job: being able to assist the kids. Handling children was honestly not one of my strong suits but Amanda was great at it, and it seemed to make her happy. Whenever Aunt Jelly called her over to help out a little kid, she had a radiant smile and a cheery voice.

But she wouldn't start her work shift until an hour from then. I couldn't wait to tell her about the news.

Finn's P.O.V

So many different people I had to be. Well, all in all, each had still been myself, but to every single Keeper a played a diverse role. To Amanda: a mystery kiss. To Charlene: a flirting lunch-sharer. To Willa: a hospital visitor. To Philby: a new neighbor. To Maybeck: a fellow employee. Although, I was still Finn, no matter what.

Now all that was left was Jess. She would be tricky; how do you gain the trust of a girl put under an evil spell? I guess the role would come when the time came to decide.

In the meanwhile, I had to continue my quest to befriend them all and guide each through their problems. Oh, jeez. If only I'd known what would have become of them if I hadn't become a Keeper, never in a million years would I have ever made that wish. It was horrid what I did to them. And I'll never forgive myself.

But it wasn't a matter of self-pardon at the moment. What I needed to focus on was the screen in front of me. The door to my room was shut tight, a mere trickle of light from the crack beneath. My bedroom was dark, so that the dim light from my laptop near blinded me.

It rang for what felt like an eternity. In reality, time passed just as it always had, one second at a time. Ten seconds, then twenty, now thirty. Maybe she wasn't home. Somehow, that didn't seem true. She must have been hesitant. I hadn't thought about the fact that she wouldn't recognize my username, my identity a mystery to her. I could only imagine her at her computer doing homework and then suddenly the call request appears. She stares at the pop-up for a long time, in her mind wondering who it is, why they are calling. Should she answer? Her hand is gently guiding the mouse so the cursor is poised over the decline button. And yet…

"Hi." I smiled at the confused look on Charlene's face; the last person she must have been thinking of was me. "I think I left things hanging last time we spoke."

"Uh…" The same unsure grin from my screen, taking her time to process. "Yeah." She sputtered out finally. "Quick question: how'd you get my number?"

Oh, darn it! I hadn't thought about that; obviously she wouldn't remember giving it to me! Okay, calm down, play it cool. "I know my ways." I smirked, willing the words out of my mouth, nonchalantly. "I don't believe I ever introduced myself. The name's Finn."

"I know." Her tongue raveled out the words before she had a chance to realize what she said. Eyes wide with regret, she stuttered, "I mean…uh. So what'd you call about?" I almost chuckled as her expression gave away her urge to slap herself, amused. Yet, I was also frustrated. Of course, it wouldn't be of my best interest for her to think I liked her.

"Nothing much. Hope you don't mind the late hour." I glanced at the clock which read nine thirty.

"Oh, no. It's fine."

"I was just wondering if you wanted to go to the Mermaid's Cave this Friday." My heart was racing. But it wasn't as though I was afraid of being rejected. The only worry I had, frankly, was that she would misinterpret this as a date invitation. In all honesty, however, what else could it have looked like to her? Great.

No matter how much she tried to repress her smile, I could tell she was ecstatic. Ready to dance around the room kind of ecstatic. "Sure, sounds great." I knew there was no way she could turn it down. When we'd been friends and it was her turn to decide where the gang would hang out, she often chose the Mermaid's Cave; fresh sea food, great music and blue-tinted lighting, she was in love with the atmosphere.

"Awesome, I'll pick you up around eight, then."

"Can't wait." She grinned, before logging off.

I think I just asked Charlie out on a date. _Perfect_.

**Ooooh seems like Finn has got himself in quite the jam there. Will Charlie blow things out of proportions on their date? Will Finn save once again become the knight in shining armor and save princess Amanda? And what will Philby do to help Willa? Stay tuned to find out! Don't forget to READ, REVIEW AND REQUEST! And check out KK Insider!**


	8. I've known him for ages

**5/11/13**

**I'm so so so so so sorry! It goes beyond words the horrible regret I feel right now! It's just so busy at school lately that I can't really update and I desperately have been having writers block! If you guys could give me some ideas to help with my writers block, that'd be fantastic!**

**Call me kissy: I am so sorry that this is the best that I can offer you, but considering I'm not a professional in the subject and I'm not wise from age either, I think it would be better suited to go to a parent or an adult for advice. Again I apologize, but I wouldn't want to make a horrible mistake or a bad piece of advice and somebody take their life in result. I wish you the best with your situation and I'm praying for your friend. My heart is with you!**

Willa's P.O.V

On Saturday, my day of leave from the hospital, Mark took me out for ice cream. He had tried to claim he was in the mood for the sweet treat, but I knew it was simply because he knew I loved it when I was upset. The majority of the day was spent just the two of us, hanging out like old times. The day had concluded with us comfortably seated on the couch with a vat of popcorn and a large pile of DVD's in front of us. It was nice to have my big brother back. And although I woke up the next morning alone, with a note on the counter that explained he had really important classes in the morning, I would have given anything to just go back and relive that day forever.

Because Monday was my first day back to school. And because that was high up in the Top Ten list for the most horrid days of my life. As I climbed up the stairs of my bus, I couldn't help but notice the hush that fell over the students. Though it hadn't lasted more than a couple of seconds, the fact that every single kid in that bus had stopped, knowing exactly who I was, knowing exactly what I had done, had made me nearly stop in my tracks, sick to my stomach.

Several minutes later, I stood paralyzed in the front courtyard of the school, my eyes locked on the ground and my fingers fidgeting anxiously, clasped around the shoulder-strap of my bookbag. Even in the grassy area, I could feel people watch me and comment. The thought of what would happen in the packed hallways…I couldn't face them.

Not for the first time in my life, I felt isolated. But this time I couldn't shake the thought, knowing I would sit alone at lunch, that I would be the only one with my nose in my book in the corner of the room during study hall because I had no one to talk to. And this time it was intensified. Because everyone would know I was the girl who tried to kill herself.

Bracing myself, and silently assuring nobody would notice me in the overcrowded halls, I forced the first few steps towards the entrance. I focused on my breathing.

_In…Out…_

All of a sudden, I was past the double doors, moving with the small current of students as they waddled through. Thanking any and all higher power for allowing me to pass through unnoticed, I reached my locker with a sigh of relief.

But as I stood, patiently staring at the mess of unidentifiable papers before me in hopes of finding a handful of my due assignments, I heard someone's voice rise above the rest in an exaggerated way to catch the attention of their peers. And what a splendid job it did.

"Stop!" A girl cried in an overdramatized voice. "You're gonna hurt yourself!"

A swarm of students dispersed as Veronica pushed through, parting the seas. She didn't want me to miss the show. No, she wanted me to have a front row seat.

People stared as Macy brought up a plastic knife and feigned the motions of cutting herself, repeatedly pretending to draw it over the skin of her left wrist. She had already been sporting a splot of fake blood there, giving the extra affect that demonstration needed. Students were turning to each other and making remarks, each whisper accumulating to a roar. Some glances were made in my direction.

Slowly, a rotten smile spoiling her face, she moved towards me, everyone's eyes following her. She held out her wrist to me, just close enough for me to reach out and dig my nails into her perfect skin. But I never did. Instead, I watched, straight-faced in contrast to my screaming soul.

"What do you think, freak-show? Deep enough to kill me? You should know." By now, not a single pair of eyes was off us. All the students spoke at once, talking over one another. I couldn't tell their reactions; were they enjoying the spectacle? I didn't know. All I knew was that I was center of attention and I wanted to _get out of there_.

In the back of my throat, a small sob caught as I choked back my cries. But I was beginning to fail as I felt tears amassing at the rims of my eyelids. Struggling to keep them from pouring over, I miserably held my blank expression, countered by my flushing face. I felt my body shaking.

As I felt my lower lip about to quiver, I gave in, bursting through the mass of students and rushing out the doors. Just exiting the building, I bumped into someone, my force nearly knocking the both of us over. But they caught me and eased me to the flat of my soles.

"Hey, careful there, Speedy Gonzales." The boy chuckled, holding onto my arms, steadying my balance, which I would have otherwise had trouble regaining.

"Sorry," I muttered, leaning back out my savior's grasp, and trying to subdue my blurred vision by wiping away my tears.

"Willa?" The boy asked, as though first realizing who had bumped into them. "Are you okay?" My heart deflated at the sudden familiarity of the voice, and I hated myself for looking up to confirm it at the sight of a head of red hair.

I nodded, trying to push past him. Yet Philby's hands held gingerly onto my arms again, tightening slightly with my movement. He wasn't going to let me leave.

"I'm fine." I squeaked, in the half-performed containment of a sob. "I have to go."

"What happened?" He asked softly. My chest constricted, surprised by his openness, despite our relationship not going so much past acquaintances of work.

I shook my head and attempted to push away, but in another odd wave of emotion, I stopped resisting it. Seeing my reluctance, he wrapped an arm around my shoulder and led us somewhere private we could talk.

Amanda's P.O.V

"Are you following me?"

"Maybe." The boy in front of me grinned, playfully raising an eyebrow. I slapped his arm, half-jokingly.

"Don't start getting cheeky with me." I retorted, surprised by finding him fashioned in a Crazy Glaze smock.

Days ago, Maybeck, my coworker, had informed me that there was an addition to our small staff. Naturally, I had been happy to be relieved of some of my duties as well as curious to see who would be the new volunteer. But never would I have expected this to happen. And only did it make my life all the more complicated.

"Sorry," He apologized in a mumble, "I've been in need of some volunteer hours and my sister used to like to come here so I figured I'd check it out. So what brought you here? Looking for an easy gift for a loved one?"

"Actually," I muttered, tying my own smock around me. "I just so happen to work here."

"You're kidding." He said, incredulously. "Wow, guess we're gonna see more of each other."

"What a shame. And here I thought this was the only time of day I could escape your torture." I countered. _Where did that come from?_

He didn't seem taken aback in the slightest at this, nonetheless. For a moment, he opened his mouth as if to respond but instead turned to pay attention to Jelly, who was explaining his tasks.

The following few hour or so was silent, the three of us teenagers quiet. It was an unusual feeling, considering I was used to kidding around with Maybeck all night. But I found myself more productive in the stillness.

It wasn't until I was wiping down one of the tables that I looked up to catch Finn staring at me. A dull blush crept up my neck and flushed my cheeks, both with embarrassment and frustration, but he didn't look away. Refocusing on my responsibilities, I tried to block out the sensation of being watched, but in vain it was.

I sighed, poised stretching across the table to scrub the far end. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"I'm not looking at you in any way." Finn replied, not missing a beat. I bore down on the cloth, uselessly transmitting my fluster into my work.

"Yes, you are. You're staring."

Out of the corner of my eye, I watched him shrug. I rolled my eyes, annoyed by his indirectness. The sound of a chuckle rang from the other side of the tiny shop, and I glanced up to see Maybeck bemusedly look over us.

My watch beeped, informing me that my shift was over. Thankful, I hurried to the back to retrieve my bags. I heard someone follow me and groaned when Maybeck spoke up. "You like him, don't you?" The smirk in his voice was predictable.

"I have a boyfriend."

"That doesn't answer my question."

"Fine," I bit back, turning agitatedly to face him, "_No, I don't like him._ I have a boyfriend."

"Well, then, he's go competition." I snorted, pushing past him and shouting a goodnight to Jelly upstairs, before throwing the door open. Outside, I was overcome by how dark it was, the moon my only comfort at the moment.

Behind me, I heard the shop door open and closed again. "Hey, wait up!" I groaned aloud, bothered, not because I didn't want to talk to him, but because all I wanted to do was get home and go to sleep.

"I'm sorry. I really should get going. My parents will freak if I'm not home soon." I glanced desperately at my watch, adding to the effect.

"Why don't you let me drive you? You shouldn't be walking around alone this time of night." Finn stated, making me feel defeated and at the same time, amused.

I laughed at his how typical this was. "I'm a big girl." I responded curtly, "I'm not afraid of the dark."

"Are you sure?" He said, so that I could utterly hear the cockiness in his voice. "There are a lot of bad kinds of people who walk around at night. They might want to hurt you. But, if you're so sure you're fine, hey, I guess you must be right. Nice shorts and tank top by the way." I stopped, glaring down at my somewhat exposing clothing and mentally reprimanded myself for letting him so easily use it against me.

But I gave in.

"Fine," A quick turn on the heels and I jogged towards where he stood, following him to his car. "You win."

"I always do." He grinned at me, making me heart melt. It was just the way he smiled, how sweet and charming he seemed in that one instant. I pushed away the thought.

"Just out of curiosity, how do I know _you _don't want to hurt me?" My falsely innocent question seemed to make him stumble a moment, but he recuperated.

"I guess there's no guaranteeing that." He winked at me. Yet, somehow, when I was sitting next to him in his car, I never felt more safe in my entire life.

Aside from me giving him directions every few minutes, the ride was silent. A rather unsettling silent, might I add. Every so often, I resisted the urge to fold my arms over my revealing attire, feeling he was right in the unsaid accusation of possible temptation. It was stupid of me, but I was actually embarrassed by it. I rolled down the window, because it was suddenly getting really hot in the car.

But I stopped thinking about it when I realized just how close we were getting to my house. "Here, stop right here at the corner house." I indicated. Of course, we were still blocks away from where I stayed.

He pulled over and stopped the car, staring out the window to the small one-story residence. "All the lights are off. You said your parents were home?"

"Uh, yeah," I stuttered. "They're probably just asleep, tired from working all day, I guess."

"Okay." He nodded inconsequentially.

I started opening the door. "Thanks for the ride." I smiled at him, earning a related response that again made my insides turn. _What is wrong with me?_

"Any time." He said sincerely, with that signature grin. I felt like I've seen it before, like a long time ago. I stepped out, my converse scratching again the gravel.

"Goodnight." I muttered, leaning against the window pane.

"'Night"

Listening closely so that I would hear it when the car rolled away, I slowly skipped up to the front door of the unknown house and feigned fiddling through my pockets for a key. When I heard the engine come to life and the tires roll off down the street, I sighed with relief.

By the time I got back to my place after walking the few blocks left, it was already eight o'clock. I knew that I should have probably started my homework and eat dinner or something, but I was still too fixated on the fact that I could have sworn I knew him for ages.

**I know it was short but again I've been really out of sorts lately when it comes to writing. I will see to it that the next chapters are longer and better! Thanks for all the support!**


	9. Jealousy in two

**6/25/13**

**Hey, fanfictioners! I actually made it today! Haha take that procrastination! Thanks, everyone, for your amazing support and unconditional kindness! You are all so amazing and you keep me going!**

**Charlene's P.O.V**

"Thanks for dinner, Finn. This was an amazing date." I said, gratefully. Saddled on the seat of his motorcycle, with my arms looped around his waist, I never wanted to let go. Not a single time that I could remember had a boy made me feel this way, like a princess. He didn't seem to like me because I was pretty, or hot; Finn made me feel like he really cared, and it was honestly a refreshing take on a relationship for me.

"Yeah…I had a great time." He smiled at me as I reluctantly climbed off. The entire ride, I could feel his body heat against my skin, every beat of his heart, mixed wonderfully with the exhilarating sensation of the wind in my hair.

My heart pounded in my chest and butterflies whirled around in my stomach. I glanced at his lips, so badly wanting them on mine, to know what it was like to be kissed by someone who meant it, not just someone who wanted to have their way with you. Nothing was stopping me from leaning forward and snatching his lips, right there, right then.

Except for the horrible urgency to leave in the back of my mind.

"I'll see you Monday." I said, finally, turning to hurry up the front steps.

"Goodnight, Charlie."

At the sound, I almost tripped on the cobblestone. The pet name sounded sweet in that voice of his. Oh, how I wanted to go back and kiss him!

I spun on my heel to face him, "'Night, Finn." I giggled, tucking a lock of my golden blond hair behind my ear, before rushing up the steps and unlocking the front door. Within seconds, I was busting through the bathroom door.

_My god, how much did I eat? Why did I have to eat so much?_ Stupid questions, considering I couldn't have refused to eat, since it was a dinner date.

It was ridiculous of me to accept the invitation, or at least I could have suggested something along the lines of a movie. My stomach had grown too accustomed to eating so little. An entire appetizer, entrée, and _god forbid _dessert! What was I thinking?

The room was absolutely spinning, so much so, that I had to close my eyes. I was just grateful that I had managed to restrain myself for the ride home. Next time, and how I hoped there would be a next time, I would pick the date. And, trust me, I would make sure that it wouldn't involve a lot of eating.

Somewhere along the way, leaning against the bathroom wall, after having rinsed out my mouth, I heard my phone ring from the other room. Thinking it was either my mom or Cole, I stayed put and let it go to voice mail. As soon as I heard the smooth voice come over as the message began, however, I sat up and listened.

"_Hey, Charlene. It's Maybeck. I just wanted to check up on you. After what happened the other night, I've been worried about you. You must be busy, but if you can, please call-"_

"Hello?" I had stumbled down the hallway, hurriedly trying to reach my phone before answering.

"_Oh…uh, hi Charlene."_ He seemed to stutter over his own words, but I decided that it was because I caught him off guard by picking up suddenly.

"Hi to you, too," I smiled into the phone, feeling my heart flutter. Though for reasons I didn't know. "And, for your information, I'm fine. Thanks for asking."

"_It's great that you're feeling better. That's all I really wanted to call about. Um…oh, yeah, Philby agreed that you shouldn't crossover for a few days. Just to make sure you're okay."_

My head grew hot, and a shock of anger coursed through my veins, "What? You told him!"

"_Char, I'm sorry. He had to-"_

"No! Thanks for the concern, but I'm a big girl. I can decide on my own if I should crossover or not. Stay out of my business!"

"_Listen, I was just looking out for you." _He stated into the phone, his own voice beginning to rise.

"Next time, just don't, okay? And as for crossing over, I'm our strongest player. Keep that in mind if you ever decide to volunteer me as benchwarmer ever again! Got it?"

"_Got it."_ He repeated sourly. _"Be careful who you decide to hang out with, Charlene."_

I tried to say, "Excuse me?", but he had hung up before I could utter another sound. Boiling blood burning my insides, I returned to the bathroom, furious. Before going to sleep, I took a cold shower, cooling my heated temper.

**Thirty minutes earlier…**

**Amanda's P.O.V**

It was late on a dead humid Friday night. Only about half an hour to go before I could hang up my apron. Finn hadn't come and, in the back of my mind, I was envious. He probably had plans, a regular Friday night spelled out dates, friends, and parties. Of course, my high school experience had to be anything but ordinary. So instead of your average Friday night get-together, I had to spend it in a crammed little store, cleaning off paint brushes and stacking pottery.

And I wasn't the only one complaining. Maybeck didn't seem too thrilled about it either. Although, it might not have been the day of the week that had been a bother; he'd had something bugging him all week. I hadn't worked up the audacity to ask him, because I knew that sometimes people could become very easily upset.

Instead, I had kept my distance, while at the same time leaving myself openly welcome if he wanted to talk about anything. I mean, he had the brashness to annoy me about Finn the other night, so I figured I could return the favor when I found the time right.

As I carried a pair of paint jars over to the cabinet, my stomach growled. I hadn't eaten lunch that day, because one of Luowski's friends 'accidentally' pushed my tray to the floor when I had sat down at our table. If he thought that was a way to get me back in my place, he had to step up his game. All throughout my day at work, I had been looking forward to a nice meal when I got home, until I remembered that all I had left were some crackers, a cheese stick, and maybe a half-glassful of apple juice.

I checked my jean pockets a third time, just to be sure that there wasn't any lost money that I could use to buy something at the 7-Eleven a few blocks down. But all that was there was the fabric of my pockets and some gums wrapped that I never threw away.

Walking towards the front door, I wondered if Jelly might consider giving me an early pay-day, as I turned the closed sign. It was then, peering through the glass of the door, that I saw him.

Coming out of the Mermaid's Cave, Finn and another girl strolled down the side walk while they talked. She looked at him and smiled, and he did the same.

And for some unknown reason, my heart stopped and my throat constricted, leaving my mouth dry. I couldn't tell you why for the life of me, but seeing that boy with another girl made me want to scream. I thought back to what he had said when we ate at the Frozen Marble. She must have been his girlfriend, yet she hadn't looked much like me.

Blond against golden brown, they could easily be similar in some manner, but not easily mistaken. Although, we did have about the same stature and height. Too concerted at the fact of my -could it be- envy, I decided to let it slide and give him the benefit of the doubt.

However, as they came nearer, I began to recognize who his date was. "Say, Maybeck," I called to the boy in the back, "Isn't that one of the DHI's?"

He set down the clay figures he was stacking and came over to stand beside me. "Yeah," I noticed his voice become firmer, as his fists clenched at his sides, "Charlene Turner. Why?"

"Well," I muttered, still taken aback by his sudden hostility. "Did you notice who she's with?"

He stepped closer to the glass, staring harder, before his eyes widened slightly, in surprise, and his jaw set. "Son of a-"

Without finishing what he was about to say, he turned around quickly and returned to the back. Turning away just as they began to climb onto a motorcycle, that I could only assume was his, I followed Maybeck. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Why're you asking?" He grunted, glaring down at the table as he picked up the sculptures again and turned around, stretching to set them on the shelf.

"Well, _that_, for one." I said, as he slammed the pots onto the mantelpiece, making me jump. "I'm sorry I showed you, I didn't-"

"I'm not mad about it, Amanda. Just forget about it, please." His voice grew calmer, as did his gestures.

"Do…do you care about her?" I asked, helping him stack. For a moment, as we reached, both our hands brushed. I looked him right in the eyes.

"Yeah, I mean, she's sort of a close friend…"

"No, I mean do you _care_ about her?" He looked away, turning around, but he didn't leave.

Seconds passed by when he didn't speak until finally, he nodded lightly, looking back at me, "Yes."

I gave him an empathetic half-smile, and resting my hand on his arm, "I know how you feel."

**Jez's P.O.V**

I grinned at the full moon, as it glared against the dark night sky. My master had told me that it makes us stronger, and who I am to ignore something that will help us?

My queen had let me wander that night, telling me that I would be under high surveillance. Ever since I told her about my dream, she'd been on edge. All that I had managed to jot down was a simply sketch of me talking with a boy, just around my own age. Somehow this was a threat in her eyes.

"_These mortals cannot be trusted, my dear Jezebel." _The dark fairy had told me, _"They want to hurt you. They want to take away that wonderful gift of yours."_

This hadn't come at all as a surprise to me. She had been spewing advice like that at me for years, as long as I could remember in fact. I didn't know why she was so obsessed with keeping me away from the rest of humanity. As far as I was concerned, the only bad people in the world were the ones trying to steal away our kingdom. _Darned Kingdom Keepers!_

The loud blaring of a motorcycle zoomed down the street from behind me, and I rolled my eyes. Just because there weren't any other bad people didn't mean that these idiotic humans couldn't annoy me at times with their obnoxiousness. But just as it was about to pass by me, the noise calmed, the vehicle slowing.

"Well, hey, there." The driver said, removing his helmet. I raised an eyebrow at hit, a gesture somewhere between _Who are you? _and _Get the hell away from me_.

"Hi." I said blankly, as he parked it beside the sidewalk and began to walk further into the park, towards me. Suddenly, it dawned on me how familiar he looked.

"Do I…know you from somewhere?" He asked, a cocky smile plastered on his face. One that I knew I could wipe off with a cold glare. But I held it back for some time.

"I don't believe I've ever had the…displeasure of meeting you." I stated, hoping for him to leave me alone. My nighttime outings were not typically interactive, rather just a way for me to get some fresh air and think to myself.

"Wow, sassy, huh?" He chuckled.

"I guess you could-" I stopped, midsentence, realizing where I knew him from. "Oh my god."

He seemed slightly startled by my outburst. But, all things considered, I was probably far more shocked than he was.

How could it be him? If this wasn't even the background of the drawing. It was much duller, and it was daytime. I raked my brain to pinpoint any logic in the situation, a connection I missed, but I got nothing.

"Hey, is there a problem over here?" A gruff voice echoed from behind me, the accent unmistakable.

The boy dared to come closer, this time determined and indifferent. "I know who you really are, Jezebel." He sneakily slipped a paper into my jacket pocket before marching back to his motorcycle. The engine roared to life and in the blink of an eye, he was already speeding away.

I sighed, hearing the rustle of trees behind me. "Oh, Frollo, why must you fluster? Everything's fine."

"I'm afraid our time out has concluded. Come, we must return you to Maleficent." He stated, before turning and ambling away.

Once he was far enough, I reached into my pocket and pulled out the paper. It simply read: _Meet me at the old cemetery Friday at noon. We have to talk about Amanda._

The entire way home, even as we reentered the parks, I pondered the note. The thought of the boy from my dream made me want to know more about him. But even more so, I wanted to know about who Amanda was. And why her name sounded so familiar.

**Hope you enjoyed! I'm finding some perspective in both this story and the book I'm working on! Haha, so excited! I'll hope to be back tomorrow with Charbeck!**

**Btw Finn has a motorcycle because a while back when my bestie read my fanfics, she (well first i'd like to add that I think she might have developed a -though small- crush on Finn) said that Finn should have a motorcycle, so I was like, Holy genius! Yeah he should! So here we are. Haha.**


	10. Act of Random Kindness

**My gosh, it's been a month! I hadn't even realized it had been that long! Sorry, guys, bad case of writer's block. But it was cured and with the help of my Fantasmic friend** kingdom-keepers-rule, **I am ****now able to present to y'all this lovely chapter.**

**I realized that some of the stories are a little slow, so I'm gonna start picking them up a little and focusing more on those.**

**Random shout-out to the best fans and followers ever! You guys are the best! Totally the bomb diggity! **Yes I said it**. Stay with the story, kay? It's gonna have a sweet ending.**

**Any suggestions are gladly accepted here! Seriously I love requests. Especially with Philby since I don't have tons of perspective on his part. So readers, get creative cuz I'm going to do my best to grant your wishes ;)**

**So yeah there's some Wilby-ness in here. Couldn't help myself! And Finn being the amazingly sweet guy that he is. And poor little Amanda, trying to stay close to big-brother Maybeck. How cute! And then we have evil Veronica being ... evil.**

**Without further delay, chapter 10!**

**Philby's P.O.V**

Willa sat beside me on the bench, as we both talked alone in the butterfly garden near the back of the school.

Her face was flushed and the ghost of her tears still trailed down her pink-tinted cheeks.

Brushing a lock of dark brown hair back, she stared down at the floor, falling silent.

"Those girls are foul! They don't know what they're talking about, okay?" I told her softly, "Willa, never pay any attention to a word they say, you hear me?"

For a long moment, she just continued to stare at the ground quietly. When she did speak, she didn't even look up, but her voice was so soft. "Is that what everybody thinks of me, though? I'm just the girl who tried to kill herself." In a clearer and firmer tone, yet somehow ten times more careful, she asked, "Is that what _you_ think of me?"

…

There had never been a time when I thought that someone could be so afraid of the people who care about them.

Even as I tried to show her that she meant more to me than just some coworker, she seemed to believe that I didn't want anything to do with her.

She was too scared that I'd been trying to push her away that she didn't even notice I wanted to help her.

There was a friend in me, and in Maybeck, and in Charlene, that she had been ignoring. Cole was hostile, towards all of us, really. But, otherwise, the rest of us? We'd never hurt her. I knew she has been trying to convince herself, but she seems to believe _never _is a hard word to understand.

I sat with her at lunch, which brought out a smile, though small, that lit up her face and made her shine. My friends came over too, and some of them actually talked to her. Despite being shy, she carried out a conversation well and they managed to make her laugh. It was nice to see her happy.

Later, I texted her when I had gotten home, and had gotten so caught up in the chat that my mom had to repeat three times that it was dinner time before I has even realized she had spoken.

"Who's that you were texting?" My mother asked, intrigued.

"Just Willa." I replied simply, hoping she wouldn't make a fuss.

And she didn't.

My father did.

"Willa _Angelo_? The DHI girl?" He inquired, incredulously.

"Uh, yeah. You know how she goes to my school and well we work together..."

"I'm well aware, son. But I don't think you should associate yourself with her."

"Nonsense, Harold." My mum intervened. "I think it's very gentlemanly of him to befriend her. She's a sweet girl, and she just needs a friend. She's been through a rough patch."

"We've all had it rough at one point or another but we don't all go with our hearts in the dirt about it." He argued.

"That's absurd!" I protested.

"She's emotionally unstable, obviously. And if for any kind of reason she decides she wants to try again and, god forbid, succeeds...you'll be carrying a heavy load for a while, my boy."

"How dare you talk about her that way!" I shouted. "She made a mistake and she's dealing with it. And you don't know her at all. She's gentle and kind, and lonely. All I want to do is show her that not everybody's going to give her a hard time because of that one mistake."

"Don't talk to me in such a manner, young man. I will not be condescended by my own son."

"As if you'd ever let that happen when you never even want to hear what I have to say about anything!" I countered.

"Stop it!" My mother said, sternly. "You're both being ridiculous. Sometimes, I swear, the only way to keep you two from fighting is to keep you separated."

**Finn's P.O.V**

"Missed you Friday." Amanda said casually, getting a bottle of paint from the back room for one of the customers. "I really could have used your help. I'm still a few inches short of some of the shelves and I couldn't reach the cans at the top for the life of me." She laughed, though it didn't ring like a song of angels; I could tell it was fake.

"Yeah, sorry I had to bail. I had plans that I couldn't get out of."

"No, I get it. It's Friday night, everyone's got something fun to do. No point in hanging out at some pottery store for no pay, right?" She concluded, before returning to the tables out front.

Her behavior gave me the impression she was angry, or at least frustrated. And somehow my not being here on Friday had initiated it.

For most of the night, she seemed to stay close to Maybeck. I hadn't noticed before but they did talk a lot. Yet, despite the little green monster's venom that trickled into my heart, I determined that it seemed reasonable. After all, they had been working together for a while before I came into the picture.

However, as the day progressed, I realized that every time I came near her, either purposefully out of wanting to start a conversation or to simply clean off a used table, she distanced herself from me. And every time, she would get dangerously close to Maybeck.

Now envy pounded through my veins as though the thick substance had replaced my blood. My arteries were too weak; it almost felt as if they would burst from the pressure.

At one point, not long before closing, she stole a glance in my direction and, in initial reflex, I looked up. Our eyes met. I shivered from the icily vacant stare she held, almost fearful, or conflicted. Through her eyes, I saw something. The way she saw me, a group she categorized me under. And it reflected back at me; different, alone, inimitable. To her, I was the puzzle piece that didn't fit with any of the others. And it terrified her to think she couldn't read me. True disgust rose within me at this perspective of myself.

In the split second that she turned around, eyes still locked on mine, she bumped into Maybeck, who had been handling a pair of clay pots. Barely understanding what she had done, she jumped back at the sound of the breaking ceramic. The fragmented pieces settled and the moment halted, leaving three teenagers staring at a mess of pottery.

Maybeck mumbled a particular word that, had Jelly been in earshot, would have gotten him a harsh slap to the back of the head, and knelt before the clutter.

"What was that? Is everyone okay?" Jelly shouted, rushing down the stairs.

Amanda gaped at the jumble, abashed and disconcerted. "I'm so sorry. I-I didn't mean to." She stammered, kneeling next to the muddle and hurriedly trying to pick up the shards.

"Oh, no, sweetheart, you stay away from there. I don't want you to get cut up." The store-owner helped Amanda, away from the mess and turned to Maybeck. "Terrance, get a broom from the closet and clean this up." He nodded and walked out of the room to the back closet.

"I'm so sorry. It really was an accident." Amanda repeated, glancing at the shattered vases.

"Don't you worry about it. Happens all the time." Jelly responded with a sympathetic smile.

"I'll pay for it. Just take it out of my paycheck." The uneasy brunette stumbled on her words slightly as she ended the sentence. I knew she couldn't afford it, just as well as she did. This wasn't some job to help pay for the car her parents refused to buy her; this was all the money she had to get by. That meant every penny counts.

"No," I reached into my back pocket to retrieve my wallet. "I'll pay for it."

Amanda glared at me, but it was a range of emotions that blended imperfectly together. She was stubborn, but again knew she wasn't in any condition to turn down whatever charity she could get. "Finn, you don't have to do that." She urged, though in the back of her throat she stifled a silent pleading for me to go along with my deed.

"I insist." I responded as Maybeck came back in and began to sweep the debris. Amanda flashed me a secret smile of thanks. "Consider it my act of random kindness for the day."

"Well, that's very sweet of you." Jelly said, taking the money from my outstretched hand. "What a gentleman. You're a lucky girl to find a catch like him."

Amanda's eyes grew wide at this statement and she almost retreated, "Oh, no. He has a girlfriend." She uttered quickly. I couldn't help by notice the fact that she didn't point out she had a boyfriend.

"Oh." She said simply, before heading up the stairs. I heard her mutter under her breath, "A darn shame. They'd have made a cute couple."

**Amanda's P.O.V**

After work, I walked straight home, avoiding glancing up to see any restaurant signs and trying to ignore the sweet smell of food as I passed by. In truth, I hadn't eaten in two days and I was starving. All through my shift, an occasion growling came from my stomach and I hoped that nobody heard.

The intense hunger made my stomach lurch in pain at school. During lunchtime, everyone sat to enjoy their meals. And just the sight of it made my head spin with starvation. Dreafully, my famine would have to continue until Friday, when Jelly would give me my precious paycheck. And if I had to skip the bus and walk to school in the rain just to save a couple dollars, so be it. As long as I could afford something to eat.

My thoughts flashed back to how Finn paid for my mistake. Literally paid. No matter how sweet it was, no matter how much I appreciated the gesture, I didn't like the demeaned feeling I had because of it. Nevertheless, I thanked him for it as we left the building and told him I'd pay him back –to which he responded that there was no need.

There was something about him that I just couldn't help but like…

As I reached the final block, I let out a small sigh. Even though I had finally made it through another day and was dying for a nap, all I could think about was my rumbling stomach and the hunger that made my insides constrict.

Just summoning the last of my energy to get up the steps, I noticed a bag at my front door. I was extremely hesitant, knowing the pranks that some kids like to play on people in their neighborhood. But when I realized what the contents of the paper bag were, I nearly jumped with glee.

Food. Actual food! It wasn't much: just a sandwich, a packet of candies, and a can of soda. But after the past few days, it felt like a feast. Stuck onto the side of the bag was a yellow sticky note that read: Enjoy.

Scribbled at the corner were three letters. A. R.K.

**Three days later…**

**Willa's P.O.V**

_Damn that Veronica._ I thought to myself bitterly, glaring out the window to my right. Brilliant colors surged across the sky as the sun dipped lower, readying for nighttime. I might have considered the view gorgeous and pleasant, had I not been bounded by four drab walls and irritatingly bright overhead lights, forced to observe the vision of beauty through the smallest of glass openings in the side of the tiny room.

Four days. Barely four days back in the school which was both congenial and displeasing, and I had been thrown right back into the mental refuge I had just begun to outgrow. It wasn't as if I didn't know it was her fault.

_The PA sounded, making the students jabber to each other noisily. "Yes?" My teacher asked, looking up from the board, where she had just started to go over the Series Expansion Formula. Hardly paying attention to my classmates or the intercom, I continued to jot down what she had written in my notebook._

'_Can you please send Isabella Angelo to room nine?' The woman asked from the office. My head snapped up faster than humanly possible when I heard my name. And my heavy heart sank like a rock in my chest._

_Mrs. Monroe turned to examine the room, before her eyes fell on me and I slumped back in my seat, feeling my legs grow numb. "She's on her way."_

_As I stood to leave the room, I heard some of the students oohing and giggling like they always did when someone was called to the counselor's office. Some of the others hadn't noticed at all, but the rest had simply fallen silent._

_Approaching room nine, I saw someone push the door open and step out. With her signature smile and a cock of her head, her eyes glistened with distinct malevolence. "Have fun in the loony bin." Veronica whispered as I passed by._

_Inside, Mrs. Smith had told me that one of my peers –who she said would remain anonymous- was concerned, and admitted to having seen me in the bathroom right before the bell rang and the students were dismissed from the cafeteria. Blade in hand, poised over my left wrist. I was breathing hard, tears in my eyes. The viewer, confused and afraid, had run to the counselor in a time of urgency. What utter bullshit!_

"_That's not true." I argued, calmly. Pulling up the sleeve of my cardigan, I displayed my perfectly untouched wrist. There was a small line that ran across the flesh, of a darker pigment, but it was from before. "I didn't do anything."_

_Mrs. Smith told me that the nameless student saw me hurry off to class when the bell rang. Yet, the fact that I had tried, that if the bell hadn't rung at that moment…_

"_They're lying." I felt my throat constrict and hot tears beginning to form. "Please, I'm getting better. I haven't been trying, I promise." I thought of Philby and how kind he had been to me in the past few days. "I'm getting better." I repeated._

_But, apparently, Veronica's lie was just that much more credible, enough to have me sent away again. They couldn't have a suicidal student on their hands, now could they?_

_When I returned to my classroom, all eyes were on me, even the teacher's. I breathed easy and quietly walked past, to my seat. As I retrieved my things, slinging my bag over my shoulder, someone whispered something to their neighbor. I couldn't tell what it was, but I didn't really want to know. My gaze fell to the floor as I left the room._

_Just as I was starting to feel like I was happy again…_

There was a short knock on the door, but I remained silent, burying my head in my knees to block out the noise. I didn't want any visitors. All I wanted to do was go to sleep, dream about something happy, and wake up back in the comfort of my home. I let out a small sigh, tired from the day and slightly dizzied by garish lights.

I heard the door open, and then close again. Then careful footfalls strode vigilantly towards my bed. My heart stopped, causing a shock of pain to throb in its place.

"What are you doing here?" I asked quickly, feeling my head grow hot with frustration.

Finn gave me a dejected pout and said softly, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." Cautiously, he stepped forward and left a bouquet of sunflowers on the table beside me. He offered a sad smile and, without another, left the room.

I stared at the door for minutes after it closed. Confused. At odds. Shaking the feeling away, I reached over and plucked up the bouquet carefully. Studying them in awe, I smiled. A real, genuine smile.

**Sunflowers are super pretty in bouquets! Finny here is gonna be a regular visitor for Miss Angelo, and maybe, just maybe, she'll open up to him ;)**

**Amanda finally got food! YES! Jeez, she was starving. Act of Random Kindness, guys. Great words to go by!**

**R, R, and R! Read, review, and request! Luv ya's!**


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